


The Last Summer in Camelot

by asilentherald



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Small Town, America, Coming Out, Explicit Language, Homophobic Language, M/M, Magic, Summer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-25
Updated: 2015-09-25
Packaged: 2018-04-23 09:27:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 28,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4871632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asilentherald/pseuds/asilentherald
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merlin just had to get through one more summer in his small(-minded) hometown of Camelot, New Jersey – one more summer of working shit hours at the movie theater, going to the diner with his friends before they all went off to college, and hiding his magic. Merlin was counting down to Move-In Day/Freedom – but then he found a cat under his porch, and his last summer in Camelot got turned upside down by new friends, old wounds, and the potential for better days than he ever could have imagined.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Last Summer in Camelot

It all started when Merlin found the kitten under his porch, still wet from the rain that morning. After he’d _aww_ ’d at it profusely and coaxed it out of the muddy crawlspace, Merlin ran inside and washed it off. The poor thing couldn’t even vocalize its protests.

“It’s all right! I’m not a giant. I’m not going to hurt you,” he cooed.

“Talking to yourself this much isn’t entirely normal, Merlin,” his mother called from the kitchen.

“Mum! Come see who I found under the porch!”

“Is it Will again?” she asked.

“No,” Merlin laughed. “This little girl’s much cuter.”

Hunith absolutely melted at the sight of the kitten. She looked at Merlin sadly. He deflated.

“We can’t keep her, can we?”

“We don’t have the money for a pet right now,” she said gently, ruffling his hair.

“But—”

“Honey. We need food a little more than a cat.”

“I do like food,” he sighed.

“See if one of your friends from school wants her,” she suggested. “I’m sure someone would want this cutie.”

She stroked the kitten’s head before hurrying back to the food on the stove. Merlin sat on the toilet seat and looked into the kitten’s huge eyes.

“Friends. Right.”

The kitten mewled at him and nudged his hand. Even baby animals felt bad for Merlin now.

* * *

It turned out that Merlin didn’t need to search far for someone to ask about the kitten, which he decided to call Aithusa. He’d put up a total of three flyers with Aithusa on it and his number in the school and received no fewer than fifteen prank calls in the three days since he put them up. Merlin was on his way to take them down while waiting around for Will to get out of football practice when a clawed finger tapped his shoulder.

“Merlin, right?”

He stared. Morgana Pendragon, talking to him? Merlin blinked a few times.

“Er. Yeah,” he said hastily. There were a total of 740 students in their high school, 185 in each year, which meant everyone knew everyone’s name. Not that someone like Morgana ever acted like she knew his name. “That’s me.”

“I was going to call about your cat but I figured just asking you might be better,” Morgana said. “Has anyone asked for it?”

He shook his head. Morgana laughed, the bells on her long earrings ringing lightly.

“Loosen up, will you? I’m not going to take your head off,” she said, flashing her gorgeous smile that made Will’s brain sputter daily. The rest of her turned Will’s brain off altogether. “Since no one’s asked, when’s a good time to come by?”

“What?”

“For the cat,” she said slowly.

“Oh. Er. I’m working all weekend, and no one’s going to be home. You could come for Aithusa during my lunch break?” Merlin asked.

“That’d be great,” she beamed. “Where?”

“The movie theater,” he replied. “I’m free Saturday between 12 and 12:30.”

“I’ll be there. Thanks, Merlin,” she said, still smiling hugely. Merlin didn’t think he’d ever seen her smile so much. She turned on her heel – her unreasonably tall heel, mind you – and walked back down the hall where Gwen, their only mutual friend, was just getting out of Sewing Club. She waved at Merlin. He waved back lamely and stuffed the flyer deep in his backpack.

The last flyer was on the board by the locker rooms. Merlin hurried, knowing the football team would be getting in soon, and they were the last people Merlin wanted to see, minus Will.

Sure enough, just as he reached up to tear the flyer off, someone shoved him into the board with an elbow to the back and snapped his Pride bracelet on the way down the hall. Merlin shoved his glasses back on his nose and glared at the guy bolting into the locker room. It sounded like a stampede coming down the stairwell, so Merlin made for the door. He was already thinking about the Calculus final in two weeks and his final project for Biology by the time he got outside.

* * *

Merlin was furiously scribbling out an integral while hunched over the glass surface of the concession stand. He popped a fry into his mouth. Another was halfway to his lips when he realized the mistake he’d made in the integral. He stuck the fry behind his ear, the salt getting between his ear and the arm of his glasses, when the doors to the theater swung open. It wasn’t a slow day, but there wasn’t a movie starting for another forty-five minutes. They only had six movies playing, after all.

“Your fry is falling,” drawled a low, smooth voice that instantly annoyed Merlin. He looked up and intended to glare, pushing his glasses up his nose, really, but the prat was _gorgeous_. It was part of why Merlin hated Arthur Pendragon, who he certainly hadn’t expected to accompany Morgana to the theater.

“Hi, Merlin. Ignore my brother,” Morgana said, jabbing Arthur between the ribs. He rolled his eyes and wandered away. She tapped her fingers a few times without saying anything before Merlin snapped to full attention.

“Hang on a sec. I’ll go grab her.”

Merlin walked around the central island inside the concession stand to the other side where Aithusa was napping in a box on the bottom shelf, right next to the spare popcorn buckets. Merlin gently lifted the box out. Aithusa stirred, but she didn’t wake. He’d lined the box with pieces of an old flannel shirt and he’d fed her milk, but otherwise Merlin had let Google direct him in caring for the kitten for the last few days.

Merlin put the box on the counter in front of Morgana. She peered into the box and her characteristic _I’m-only-smiling-because-I-find-you-peasants-amusing_ demeanor fell away. She beamed and reached into the box, only to pull back at the last second.

“Can I—?”

“Yeah! Yes. Go ahead and pick her up.”

Morgana gently scooped the kitten out and held it in both of her hands. She looked utterly awed. Merlin was a little awed at her reaction and stared baldly.

“What’s her name again?”

“Aithusa,” he said. Morgana raised an eyebrow at him. “Er. I read it in a book.”

“It’s a lovely name,” she said softly. “How much do you want for her?”

“How… much? Money?”

“Yes,” she said, reaching for her purse and extracting a checkbook. What sort of seventeen-year-old carried a checkbook around?

“Nothing,” Merlin blurted. “I mean. No, I don’t want anything. Look, I found her under my porch. I just want to make sure she’s going someplace that can take care of her.”

“She’ll kill the thing in a week,” Arthur called from down the counter.

“Fuck off, brother, dearest,” she said sweetly. Morgana turned to Merlin again. “I’ll give you two hundred.”

“No really—it’s more than okay. Just… let me know she’s doing okay, yeah?”

“That’s not happening either,” Arthur interjected, sidling up to Morgana. He reached for the cat but Morgana automatically slapped his hand away. “Honestly, Morgana, where did you even find this kid?”

“We’re in Calculus together,” she replied curtly, “and I’m fairly sure we’ve both had English Lit with Merlin for the last four years. Right?”

Merlin swallowed dryly and nodded. He was biting his tongue so hard he could almost taste the blood.

“Does it matter?” Arthur said, sounding bored. He rolled his shoulders. “Can we go now? I need to get to Leon’s soon.”

Merlin rolled his eyes.

“Take the box,” he said, nudging it toward Morgana. She replaced Aithusa in her nest of flannel.

“I’ll be good to her,” Morgana vowed. Merlin smiled stiffly at her, very much aware of Arthur watching him through narrowed eyes.

“Your fry’s falling,” Arthur said suddenly. He reached out and snatched it just as it slipped off of Merlin’s ear. His glasses slid down on one side from the motion. Merlin scowled and pushed them back in place. Arthur looked between Merlin and the fry a few times before shrugging and eating it. Morgana glared at him.

“Oi! Get the hell back to work, Merlin!” his supervisor, Val, shouted. Merlin started packing up his books and putting them under the counter. When he looked up, Morgana and Arthur were disappearing out the door into the glare of the midday sun in May.

* * *

Graduation wasn’t a big deal. Merlin put on his best shirt only to sweat through it in the heat of the stadium. He was glad for the robes covering that up. He didn’t trip going up and down the steps of the stage, for which Will congratulated him profusely with exaggerated hand-shaking and everything. His mother took at least seven pictures of the occasion. Merlin, Will, his mom, and Will’s dad went out to the Camelot Diner for their celebratory dinner. They sat around nursing their milkshakes until late. All in all, Merlin was pretty happy with the way things had gone.

They were about to pay and go back to Will’s house for movies when all three Pendragons came through the door. The staff rushed to congratulate Morgana and Arthur while Uther stood around looking pleased and proud while he surveyed the establishment.

“I heard he’s been thinking of closing the place down,” Will’s father, John, said, leaning across the table.

“Hmm,” Hunith said, pursing her lips. “I should hope not. It’s the heart of Camelot.”

“Yeah, but he owns it, so he can do whatever he wants.”

“He owns the whole damn city, John. He can update the place or something. He’s sure got the money for it,” Hunith replied. “I hope he doesn’t close.”

“Me, too,” Merlin said, shaking his head.

“Let’s get out of here,” Will muttered. He was red in the face, probably from getting caught staring at Morgana’s cleavage, and eager to get home. He’d been bouncing in the booth for the last half hour.

“Fine, you great child,” Merlin said with a withering sigh. “Let’s go.”

On the way out, Morgana caught Merlin’s arm.

“Congrats,” she said with a wide smile that didn’t reach her eyes. It was nothing like the way she smiled at Aithusa the first time she saw her.

“You, too, Morgana,” Merlin said.

“Where’re you headed?”

“Now or with life?”

She looked at him oddly. “Both, I suppose.”

“Now, back to Will’s for movies. Life?” Merlin shrugged. “I’m headed to NYU.”

“Which school?” she asked, her smile turning from polite to mischievous in an instant. Merlin’s grin widened.

“Gallatin.”

“Same! Any ideas for a major yet?”

“Not a damn clue,” Merlin said, though that was a bit of a lie. He was hoping to do something with magical studies and biology, but that wasn’t something he was going to tell just anyone. “How’s Aithusa doing?”

“Really well,” she said, brightening instantly. “She’s grown a bit. I’ll bring her by the theater sometime if you want.”

“Yeah,” Merlin said. “That’d be awesome.”

“I guess this isn’t good-bye yet,” she teased.

“Guess not.”

“Don’t sound so disappointed!”

“I wouldn’t dare! Gwen raves about you. She says you braid hair very well,” Merlin said.

“Start growing that out and I’ll see what magic I can work,” Morgana winked. Merlin sputtered before surrendering to giggles. Morgana joined in – until Arthur showed up. He frowned at Merlin after a few moments of blankly staring.

“You’re the one who gave her the cat,” he said.

“Er. Yeah?”

Arthur smiled slowly, his absurdly blue eyes refusing to look away from Merlin.

“That was good. Good idea, there.”

“Is he drunk?” Merlin asked as Arthur swayed into Morgana and sniffed her hair.

“A tad, but we’ve got him under control,” Morgana said dismissively. She batted Arthur away. “Don’t worry.”

“Wasn’t. I was just wondering.”

Morgana raised an eyebrow at him – clearly something she learned from Gaius, who ran the theater he worked at and was an old friend of Uther’s. She looped her arm through Arthur’s to steady him and leaned in to kiss Merlin’s cheek. He stiffened.

“See you soon.”

Arthur looked at them both, started to smile, looking utterly angelic, even under the shitty lights in the diner. His hand found Merlin’s arm and slid down it slowly, lingering for several seconds. It sent a huge shock through Merlin. He recoiled.

Morgana’s withering sigh snapped Merlin back to attention.

“Ignore him. I’ll straighten him out later.”

“Uh. Okay?” Merlin was proud to string those few letters together. Morgana rolled her eyes at Arthur and started tugging him away to where their father was waiting. She looked back over her shoulder and said,

“Night, Merlin.”

“Night,” he said slowly, frowning. He left the diner and joined his mom at their car.

“Will and John went ahead,” she said. Merlin buckled in and tried hard not to touch his cheek, even though the skin Arthur touched was still on fire. He scowled at his reflection and rolled the window down. “So you know Uther Pendragon’s kids?”

“Everyone knows everyone, mom. It’s a small town,” Merlin said.

“They seemed nice.”

“Morgana’s the one who took Aithusa, and apparently she’s going to NYU, too,” Merlin said. “I don’t know much about Arthur.”

“He didn’t look very well.”

“Drunk, apparently.”

“That’s… troubling,” she frowned.

“He’ll be fine,” Merlin muttered. “Morgana said so.”

When they got to Will’s, his mom and Will’s dad ended up hanging out on the back porch rather than watching the movie with Merlin and Will. Halfway through the movie, their parents joined them and brought them beers.

“It’s a special day,” Hunith said lightly, but Merlin heard the warning loud and clear. He took the beer gratefully and drank it slowly, making it last the rest of the movie.

All in all, it wasn’t a shabby day. Merlin just had to survive one more summer in the tiny town of Camelot working in the theater and killing time with his magic before he could finally get out. He was counting down the days until move-in now. It was so close, he could almost taste the dirty-water hot dogs and halal food.

* * *

Merlin showed up late to Gwen and Lance’s joint graduation party. He’d had to work a later shift than usual because Val had an extra stick stuck up his ass that week. Then he’d had to actually go home, change, and wrap up the gifts. By the time he got to the party, he wasn’t sure if he preferred to stay and drink (even though he’d had a total of three drinks in his life, all on separate occasions), or just go home and sleep as soon as he could get away.

“Merlin!” Gwen exclaimed. “Thank god you’re here. I was starting to worry you’d gotten lost!”

“Well, you know, this place is in the middle of fucking nowhere—”

“Shut up,” she said, punching his arm lightly. Gwen lived in the center of town in the apartment above her father’s shop.

“This is for you,” he said, “and this one’s for Lance.”

“I’ll get it to him. He and Arthur went on a beer run.”

“Pendragon? _He’s_ here?”

“Er. Yes? They’re all on the football team together, Merlin.”

“I know,” Merlin said quickly.

“Good. Otherwise I’d have thought I was hanging out with a Merlin-clone all those boring afternoons watching them on the bleachers.”

“How do you know I’m not the Merlin-clone now?”

“You’ve still got popcorn in your hair, that’s how,” she said with a tiny smug smile. Merlin groaned. She smiled and swiped the popcorn away. 

“Thanks,” he grumbled.

“Oh! Before I forget. I have a few things for you.”

Gwen grabbed him by the elbow and led him through the crowd back to her room. It was much quieter there; Merlin could breathe a bit better now. Gwen ducked into her closet, rifling through some boxes until she came up with a brightly wrapped box.

“This is for you!” she said. “I looked for _ages_ for this, so you’d better like it.”

“Is it a puppy?”

“No.”

“Damn.”

“You’ll love it,” she beamed. “Oh! One more thing. This is also for you, not from me, but you have to open it when you’re home and no one’s around. Also you have to keep it on pain of death, apparently.”

She handed Merlin a blank white envelope. Merlin could feel a thin card inside, but nothing else. He held it up to the light and shook the envelope until Gwen took it away and swatted his arm with it.

“Just take it, Merlin,” she said exasperatedly.

“Why’re you giving me all this now?”

“You’re tired. I can tell. You have my permission to ditch the rest of the party as of right now,” she said kindly. Merlin opened his mouth to protest, but it came out as a yawn. “Precisely.”

“You’ll make a great mind-reader, Gwen,” Merlin said with a sigh. She opened the door for him.

“Psychologist, love. _Psychologist_.”

“Same thing.”

“Go get some sleep. Oh, and we should go for a hike soon!”

“Text me. Val’s been giving me the worst hours possible.”

“He’s an asswipe,” Gwen said, wrinkling her nose.

“Such vulgar language! What’s brought this on?” Lance said, sweeping down the hall and grabbing Gwen by the waist. She smiled and kissed him lightly.

“Merlin’s boss. He’s giving him shit hours.”

“That’s rough,” Lance said sagely. Merlin rolled his eyes.

“It’s not bad, guys. Night.”

“Night, Merlin,” Lance said before turning his attention back to Gwen.

Merlin ignored the usual dull pang in his chest and squeezed past them down the hall. He pushed his way through the crowd, cradling Gwen’s gift and the envelope against his chest. He made his escape, brushing past Arthur Pendragon by the door as he went. He felt a jolt of lightning when their arms touched. Merlin forced it away, though his magic crackled all the way back to his house.

* * *

Two weeks into the summer, Merlin’s glasses broke. Rather, Val’s boot broke Merlin’s glasses, and Merlin’s nose, at the same time. It was a pretty efficient sequence, really – a punch to the gut then a kick to the face. If he’d intended to make Merlin’s life as miserable as possible, which was Merlin’s growing suspicion, he was doing a stellar job.

“Fuck. Do you have to wear those boots?” Merlin swore, struggling not to choke on the blood gushing out of his nose as he knelt on the floor.

“Apparently I do to deal with you, Emrys,” Val said. He threw a roll of paper towels at him.

“Oh, that’s considerate.”

He grabbed Merlin by the front of his shirt and shook him hard. His eyes gleamed, his face hot as he leaned in.

“Clean up. Don’t let me catch you fucking with the machines again.”

“Yes, sir,” Merlin muttered.

Val threw him back against the buckets and bottles of cleaning supplies.

“Pendragon’s not fond of you magic-freaks,” Val said. Merlin looked up sharply. “There’s no telling what he’d do if he found one of you cockroaches in one of his precious establishments.”

“You can’t be serious,” he gaped.

“Dead serious, Emrys. You’re only here because Gaius likes you. Give me a reason to talk to the big man and I will.”

“Haven’t you got one?” he said, teeth clenched as his face started to throb.

“I’ll cut you a deal, just this once, since I’m a good guy. Keep quiet about _that_ and I’ll keep quiet about you. Seems more than fair to me,” Val said. Merlin said nothing. “Glad we’ve got an understanding here.”

Val left him in the janitor’s closet. Merlin sagged against the shelves and stuffed a few sheets of paper against his nose. When the bleeding stopped, he went to the bathroom and did his best to clean off, but he only had five minutes left in his break. Merlin changed into one of the spare shirts and stuffed his bloody one in his backpack. He settled at the concession stand again and held his head in his hands, waiting for the end of his shift at midnight – and it was only nine-thirty.

Gwen and Lance showed up, and Merlin knew immediately things were about to get ugly.

“Christ! Merlin, what happened? Are you okay?” Gwen asked. She nearly dragged him over the counter.

“Augh! Let go, Gwen! I’m fine,” he winced when she touched his nose.

“That’s broken, Merlin,” she said flatly. “Who did this to you?”

“I tripped.”

“Your glasses are broken, too.”

“Oh. Right.”

He took them off and placed them on the counter. A piece of glass fell out of the frame.

“I’m due for a new pair anyway,” he sighed.

“Merlin,” she said warningly. Without warning, Lance grabbed his face and turned him over a few times, like he was a prize animal rather than a person. Merlin pushed away.

“Quit it. I’m fine. I’ll go to the doctor tomorrow.”

Gwen receded from climbing halfway over the counter. She crossed her arms and looked utterly terrifying, considering how small she was and how brightly colored and floral her shirt was. Lance looked as concerned as she looked pissed.

“Whoever you’re covering for, I can promise you it’s not worth it,” she said. She sounded disappointed. Merlin shrank a little. She softened. “Can we come by your place tomorrow to watch something?”

“I’ve got work,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck, “from two to twelve, and before that I’ll be at the shelter.”

“You mean at the doctor’s office.”

“Er. Yeah. That’s what I meant,” he said hastily. “What’re you seeing?”

“ _Young Avengers_.”

“Tapping into your inner nerd. Always a good choice,” Merlin said sagely.

“Inner? Please,” Gwen snorted. “You know I’ll be coming to visit for New York Comic-Con, right? And I’ll be cosplaying America Chavez?”

Merlin gasped. “That’s what you were making in sewing club?”

“I didn’t want to say anything about it ‘til I finished,” she said with a shy smile, “which I didn’t, by the way. School ended before I got everything done, but Lance got me a sewing machine for graduation and I just finished up today! I’m really happy with it.”

“Do I get to see?” Merlin asked.

“Only if you let me make you a Wiccan costume.”

“Er. We’ll see.”

“That’s a yes,” Lance grinned. Merlin stuck his tongue out at him.

“So are you kids gonna buy something or get me in trouble?”

“The usual, Merlin, dearest,” Lance sighed. Merlin mock-bowed and walked away to prepare their large popcorn, sodas, and candies. When he returned with their boxes, they cut off in the middle of intense whispering. Gwen plastered a smile on her face.

“Smooth,” he said.

“See you later, then?”

“You know where to find me,” he said with a big, almost painful grin. Merlin waved them off as Lance wound his arm around Gwen’s waist and they disappeared into the movie theater.

He’d been working so much lately that he hadn’t gotten to see _Young Avengers_ yet.

His nose started bleeding again. Merlin grabbed a handful of napkins and settled in for the last few hours of his shift.

* * *

On Friday evening Merlin was working and steadily working through his Sudoku book when Val wasn’t out on the floor. His nose was bandaged up and his face was bruising brilliantly. His glasses were beyond repair, so he’d resorted to his contacts until he could scrounge up enough money to buy a new pair.

“Two popcorns, please,” asked a familiar, frustrating voice. Merlin tucked the Sudoku away.

“What size?” he asked, looking up. Arthur did a double take. Merlin glared, daring him.

“Small. What happened to your face?”

“Arthur! That’s rude,” said Sophia, apparently Arthur’s flavor of the week. She clung to his arm like a wet rag.

“None of your business, Arthur,” Merlin replied. “Butter?”

“Obviously. No, really, what happened?”

“Tripped.”

“No one’s _that_ clumsy,” Arthur said exasperatedly.

“I’m really uncoordinated. Really. Ask anyone,” Merlin said.

“Didn’t you fall down the bleachers during the last week of school?” Sophia asked.

“Precisely! I trip, a lot,” he said, nodding vigorously. “That’ll be fourteen dollars.”

Arthur fished out his wallet.

“Morgana wants to know if you got her card,” he added, handing Merlin the money. He put it into the register and counted the change slowly. He had a headache that was only getting worse.

“What card?”

“She told Gwen to give it to you,” Arthur said, speaking extremely slowly. Merlin thrust his change at him and shoved the popcorn at them. Sophia took both buckets. “White envelope?”

“Oh. That. I didn’t open it yet,” Merlin said without thinking.

“You really are dim, aren’t you? Just open the fucking card, _Mer_ lin.”

Arthur pulled Sophia away from the counter, even though she’d been eyeing the Sour Patch Kids longingly. She looked like she’d swallowed a bag of sour crystals as he led her into the theater. Merlin peered at the sign – _Hush, Hush_ , the latest teen novel movie adaptation. For that moment, he deeply pitied Arthur. Then he remembered that this was _Arthur_ , who gave him literally no reason to like him, so Merlin went back to his Sudoku. He did his best not to pick at the bandages on his face.

* * *

Late that night, Merlin opened the white envelope. Inside was a simple card with shiny silver lettering reading  _Congratulations_ . It looked pretty but impersonal, like Christmas card stationary. Merlin reevaluated the card when he opened it. A photograph fluttered out of the card, the inside of which was covered in a dense ink drawing of a stylized tree. Only in the lower right corner was there actual writing.

_Merlin –_

_Congrats! Thanks again for Aithusa. Give me a call if you’re looking for a roommate for the fall (Aithusa’s coming with me to New York, too)._

_– Morgana_

Merlin stared. When his mouth dried out, he snapped his jaw shut. The photograph gleamed on the floor. He picked it up and examined it under his dim lamp. Aithusa was curled up in her flannel, nestled inside a bigger, fancier kitty bed of sorts. She looked bigger and healthier than when Merlin last saw her. Her tiny paws clung firmly to the flannel Merlin had given her.

He beamed.

Then he looked back at the card and his stomach turned nervously. The idea of living with Morgana didn’t help his latent anxiety levels at all. Sure, it sounded fine in theory – they say you should live either with people you know really well or not at all, and Morgana fell into the latter category, but they were _so different_. Then there was the whole part about how Morgana showed absolutely no interest in him until two weeks before the end of school and now apparently felt indebted enough to offer splitting rent with him.

He could think about it later. Merlin put the photo on his nightstand and shut the light off.

* * *

Val watched Merlin like a hawk for the rest of the month and consistently gave him the worst and longest hours.

“It’s as if they don’t have other employees,” Will said, chucking a rock into the lake with gusto. Merlin watched the ripples fan out.

“They only have two other guys, and Jeff usually runs the box office. Gilli’s got an internship so he can’t work the stand full-time like I can,” Merlin explained.

“Excuses, excuses. Pendragon’s got enough money to hire more people.”

“You think he wants to give it away?”

“That’s the right kind of thinking, there,” Will said, tapping Merlin’s head. Merlin handed him a flat stone. It skimmed the water’s surface three times. “Pendragon’s a greedy jackass, if you ask me. It’s a shame about Morgana being related to that asshole.”

He let out a simpering sigh. Merlin kicked Will’s leg. He hadn’t told him about Morgana’s offer yet.

“Arthur’s a prat. At least that much is genetic.”

“Got that right. You find the gene for that at your big, fancy research university. Use him as your test dummy,” Will said. “He’s the perfect lab rat.”

“Fuck off,” Merlin laughed.

“What?” he said innocently. “Arthur’s just like his dad. Might as well put him to good use before he gets out of control.”

“Out of control? What’s that even mean?”

“Well, my dad said he was drunk after graduation,” Will said. Merlin berated himself for even telling his mom about it. “Seems they type to go batshit at college, join a frat, go after anything with a short skirt.”

“I don’t know about that.”

“What, you two buddies now?”

“No. He’s at the theater a lot. He’s a prick, don’t get me wrong, but he’s definitely not _that type_ ,” Merlin said with a shudder. Thank fuck for that. “He’s pretty noble, when it comes down to it.”

“Noble? Did you miss the part where he let Kay and those other bastards pack you into a locker sophomore year?”

Merlin winced. He’d dislocated a shoulder, due to that particular incident.

“Give him a chance.”

“Why?” he shot. “Why should I? He’s been nothing but shit to us, Merlin. Why should we be nice to him, now that we don’t have to be?”

“Because we’re not as asshole-ish as him and his friends?”

“That’s not a word.”

“Fuck you, it’s _your_ word.”

Will threw a handful of dirt at Merlin.

“Why’s Pendragon at the theater so much anyway?”

“He’s apparently on a mission to date every available girl from our class this summer,” Merlin replied. “He’s turned up at least once every week. He’s only brought the same girl twice, and he always gets them the same snacks, never anything more.”

“Even for that one girl?”

Merlin nods.

“Huh. Someone’s desperate to get laid.”

“Doesn’t look like it’s working,” Merlin said, looking out at the water. He pinched the flesh of his index finger while Will scrutinized him.

So maybe learning that Arthur wasn’t 100%-asshole helped Merlin realize that what he thought has been disdain for him had actually been a carefully constructed mask. Merlin unfortunately, had a growing crush on Arthur, and Will was the last person he wanted to know about it. Gwen was bad enough alone.

Merlin looked at his watch.

“Shit. I’ve got to go. My shift starts in half an hour.”

“Run before Val breaks something else,” Will shouted. Merlin turned back and glared at him. He gave an innocent shrug before returning to hurling rocks into the water. Merlin sent a wisp of magic and flicked him upside the head. “Hey!”

Merlin sniggered and drove away before Will could chase him down.

* * *

On Saturday night, Merlin was wiping down the counter when Arthur came out of the movie in the middle of the showing making distressed sounds. Merlin paused and watched him march to the bathroom, running his hands through his hair, only to turn around at the door and stalk up to Merlin himself. Merlin clutched the butter-drenched rag.

“Bring out one of the female employees, Merlin.”

“There aren’t any here… or at all, ever, actually. Why?” Merlin asked. He had a feeling he wasn’t going to like where this was going.

“My date is having a bit of a, er, feminine crisis.”

“She needs a pad?” Merlin asked. Arthur shot him an annoyed look, but it quickly turned pleading.

“Tell me someone’s got something around here.”

“There aren’t any female employees, Arthur, and we haven’t got dispensers in the bathroom,” Merlin said. Arthur’s eyes widened comically.

“That’s a thing?”

“Yep.”

“And we don’t have it?”

“Nope.”

“Fuck. All right, here,” Arthur paused. He drew out his wallet and handed Merlin a twenty-dollar bill. “Go to the Rite-Aid and get it for me.”

“What the hell? I’m working! I can’t leave,” Merlin gaped.

“Well, I can’t go!”

“She sent you out here, didn’t she? Just go and get it yourself!”

“I’m on a date!” Arthur exclaimed.

“I’m _working_! Get the damn pads yourself!”

“Merlin.”

“What?” he snapped. Arthur said nothing. _Oh._ “You really don’t know what to get? You have a sister!”

“So? I don’t go shopping with her and we don’t share bathrooms.”

“So how the hell should I know what to get?”

“I don’t – you know a lot of things! Mostly useless things, granted, but I thought you’d be marginally helpful,” Arthur grumbled. Merlin sighed.

“Can’t you ask someone at Rite Aid?”

“NO!”

“Sheesh! Don’t shout! Fine. Just get one of these brands,” Merlin said. He tore a page out of his Sudoku book with a filled-out puzzle and wrote the brands he remembered buying for his mom and for the shelter’s stock in the past. “Get a small pack.”

“Okay. I can… yeah. Thanks, Merlin,” Arthur said, flashing a grin at him. He bolted out the door.

“You’re lucky I’m worldly like that,” Merlin muttered as he returned to cleaning the counter.

Arthur turned up ten minutes later. He plucked the pack out of the bag and showed it to Merlin as he made for the theater. Merlin gave him two thumbs up and what was probably a ridiculous smile, judging by Arthur’s extreme eye roll. Merlin turned away from the theater until after he heard someone in noisy shoes scurry across the lobby to the bathrooms. He focused on his Sudoku as she walked back.

The movie ended twenty minutes later. Merlin was serving a couple (both aged twelve by the looks of it) when Arthur and his date, clad in a white dress, walked out of the theater. They hovered just short of the entrance, talking quietly on a bench, heads bent close together. Merlin almost gave the couple Twix instead of Twizzlers when he caught a glimpse of one of Arthur’s blinding smiles.

“Sorry about that,” he said.

“It’s cool,” the girl said, revealing a full set of braces on her teeth. She handed Merlin the money and led her date to the next showing of _Hush, Hush_.

Merlin checked his watch. He had three more hours. He looked up and saw Arthur and his date gathering their things. Arthur put his arm around her and opened the door for her. He cast a glance back. Merlin waved awkwardly. Arthur shook his head with a smile threatening to form on his lips. His date took his hand and pulled him out of the doorway.

* * *

The next day just before lunch, Morgana showed up with Aithusa and a basket of food in tow.

“Come on. My treat,” she said before Merlin could even manage a simple hello. She raised the folding panel of the concession stand and dragged Merlin out. Merlin caught sight of Val marching out to say something, but he saw who was pulling his employee out and promptly shut his mouth.

Morgana led him out to the parking lot where she’d parked her car in the corner covered by the most foliage and shade. She opened the trunk of the SUV and put Aithusa’s box down. She hopped onto into the trunk and patted the space beside her.

“Sit.”

Merlin obeyed. She handed him a sandwich.

“I hope veggie’s okay,” she said.

“More than okay,” Merlin said through a mouthful of food. He pointed at himself. “Vegetarian.”

“Oh, good,” she said, sounding relieved. She picked up her own veggie sub and they ate in silence until they were finished. Merlin sipped his soda loudly. “You’re gay.”

Merlin choked on an ice cube.

“Er. Yes?”

He shook the bracelet on his wrist.

“Just checking. Gay, bi, pan, ace, all the rest – I’m trying to keep it straight. No pun intended, of course,” she added. She reached into the box and pulled Aithusa out. She deposited her on Merlin’s lap. The cat instantly started rubbing up against Merlin’s chest and arms and purring loudly.

“My friend just came out to me as a lesbian. She told me she was in love with me,” Morgana declared.

“Oh. Er. That’s—”

“Tricky, I know. But… the thing is, I might love her back, but I’ve always thought I was straight. I don’t think I want to have sex with her, but I don’t really know what I’m feeling actually means.”

Merlin choked on another ice cube.

“Morgana – why are you telling me all this?”

“Because Gwen said you’d be better help than her,” Morgana blinked, as though it were obvious.

“Right,” Merlin said warily. “I’m hoping she didn’t say why.”

“She may have mentioned you experienced something similar—”

“I’m going to _murder_ Gwen—”

“Oh, don’t! That’d be like Aithusa trying to take on a poodle,” Morgana burst into laughter. “She meant well, I swear. I just want some insight. That’s all. She didn’t tell me any details, I promise you.”

“But you probably can guess, right? Because Will’s a fucking blab and he played football with Arthur and the others,” Merlin said sourly.

“Damn them all, Merlin!” Morgana snapped. “Forget Arthur and his friends and even Will. You’ve graduated. You don’t need any of them if they don’t make you happy.”

“Will _does_.”

“So are you—?”

“No! God no. That’s gross. He’s basically my brother.”

Morgana sniggered, then pursed her lips. She was waiting for Merlin to elaborate but he wasn’t about to say a damn word.

“That whole episode is very early-sophomore-year,” Merlin said with finality, draining his cup. He slammed the cup down, startling Aithusa. “Sorry,” he murmured, stroking the soft fur on her head. “I can’t figure out why you’re talking to me.”

“Because I need help,” she said slowly, sounding precisely like her brother.

“No, I mean – you never talked to me once at school until you asked after Aithusa, and now you’re – you’re asking me about your gay crisis and offering to room with me?”

“Oh, so you did get my note! Have you given it any thought?” she asked excitedly.

“Can we save that? One thing at a time?” he pleaded. She nodded.

“I’ll be good.”

“Okay. Tell me why, then.”

“Because we’re the same. We’re both magic.”

Merlin’s hand slipped off Aithusa’s head and hit the car with a _thunk_.

“Don’t worry. I haven’t told a soul,” she added, as though that made anything better.

“How did you—?”

“I saw you one day in the woods,” she said softly. “I was out for a walk and I heard something hit the water, so I went to look, and you were there, picking up rocks and branches and tossing them into the lake without lifting a finger. I didn’t mean to spy on you, but I had to stay and watch. I felt so… happy, really. I wasn’t alone anymore.”

“We’re can’t be the only ones who had magic at school,” Merlin said pointedly, though he didn’t really believe his words.

“Maybe, maybe not, but I had this feeling that…  you’d be cool, with a little sprucing up. I want us to be friends, Merlin,” she said earnestly. “We’ll both be at Gallatin where we’ll probably both be taking magical studies classes. It’ll be nice to say I have a friend there in the city.”

“I… yeah,” he said lamely. “I guess you’re right. Who knows about your magic?”

“No one.”

“Not even Arthur or your dad?”

Morgana scoffed. “Not a chance.”

“Oh, wow. Okay. Well, I’m not telling them,” Merlin said. Aithusa climbed over his hand and across to Morgana. She smiled softly at her. “As for your friend… I don’t know. Don’t dismiss it, if you think you might feel something for her. Just… give it a shot?”

“That’s easier said than done,” Morgana said, voice strained.

“Sometimes it’s the way you’ve been thinking your whole life that’s stopping you from being—”

“Gay as a rainbow unicorn?” Morgana smiled.

“Exactly! Start there. If you… if you need to talk it out, that helps. Talk to me or Gwen,” he said. She dug in her pocket and handed Merlin her phone expectantly. Merlin put in his number.

“Thanks,” she said. “I mean it. I think you helped a bit.”

“Glad to be of service,” Merlin smiled. He looked at his watch and swore. “And now I’ve got to go before Val fires me.”

“He’s got a nasty temper, has he?” she asked, her tone cool. Merlin shrugged, though he was _so_ killing Gwen the first chance he got. “Call me if you’ve got a problem. I can, y’know, do something about it.”

“It’s nothing.”

“But there is an _it_!” she crowed. Merlin ignored her.

“Thanks for lunch,” he called. Merlin jogged back to the theater where Val was standing in the window looking extremely displeased. He caught Merlin’s shoulder as he passed.

“You know her?”

“Yeah,” Merlin said nervously. “We’re, uh. Friends.”

“Friends,” he spat. “Right. Pity case is more like it.”

“Whatever,” Merlin muttered. He shoved out of Val’s grip and made a beeline for the concession stand. Behind that counter, at least, he was safe from Val and his meaty fists and blunt boots.

Morgana saying _We’re the same_ played on loop in his head for the rest of the afternoon.

She texted him asking for his email address two hours later, and then emailed him three links to flats in the village that he couldn’t afford, even if he was splitting the price with her. She sent him a few options in Stuytown and in the Bowery that were maybe _possibly_ doable. Merlin made a note to ask his mom about his living situation for the fall over dinner, for research’s sake.

He still preferred to stay in a dorm and meet entirely new people. He was going to the city to get away from his life in Camelot, not room with the daughter of the physical embodiment of everything wrong with the tiny town, for fuck’s sake.

Merlin groaned, and then knocked over another open bottle of butter. He let his head rest on the cold surface of the counter until he felt the butter seep into his hair.

* * *

On Friday night, Arthur showed up without fail with yet another girl, but this time she was someone Merlin recognized: Mithian Nemeth. She’d been Merlin’s lab partner in AP Bio for the last year. They came into the theater already laughing their asses off at something or another.

“Two small popcorns and Sour Patch Kids, Merlin,” Arthur said, still chuckling. Merlin quirked an eyebrow at him. “What?” he demanded, all hilarity fading away.

_He deviated_.

“Nothing, my lord,” he said smoothly, handing over their food. “Anything else for you tonight?”

“No, _Mer_ lin,” Arthur said, souring completely. He dropped the money and change on the counter and dragged Mithian away before Merlin could say hello to her. Merlin glared at the back of Arthur’s head. They started laughing, practically snorting, really, just as they disappeared into the theater. Merlin huffed and put the change away with unnecessary force.

He spent the duration of Arthur and Mithian’s movie date scowling at the closed doors – they were seeing _Young Avengers_ , goddamn it – and telling himself that it was totally irrational and stupid to feel in any way affected by Arthur’s choice of date, or the fact that _he fucking deviated from his usual popcorn order_.

This was different. This was big.

This meant Merlin _really_ had to get over his senseless crush on Arthur.

Luckily, he was only there until nine, which meant he’d get to leave before Arthur and Mithian got out of their movie. Merlin did his absolute best, really, to focus on reading the latest issue of _Guardians of the Galaxy_ , but not even Starlord could get his mind off of Arthur. Merlin groaned.

“Fucking ridiculous,” he muttered. He stuffed the comic in his bag and packed up the rest of his things just as Gilli walked into the theater. He looked like a breeze could knock him over.

“Hey, Merlin,” he yawned.

“Long day?”

Gilli nodded. Merlin tried for a reassuring smile, but Gilli looked too drowsy to notice.

“Look, Val’s been nuts about checking up on us out here lately,” he said, glancing at the open door to Val’s office at the back of the lobby.

“I’ll try and stay alive for the next three hours,” Gilli said. “Thanks.”

Merlin waved and slung his backpack over his shoulder on his way out. The night was mercifully cool after a string of humid days. His battered car awaited in the back of the parking lot. He drove out of the plaza and down the highway for five minutes. He pulled up to the diner where Gwen, Lance, and Will were waiting in their usual booth in the corner.

Merlin exhaled, relieved. They’d ordered his milkshake already. He slid into the booth and drank the shake until his head started to pound painfully. Gwen pulled the glass out of his reach and pushed it away with a reproachful look.

“Long day?”

“Yep,” Merlin said, holding his head. His still-healing nose was hurt more than the rest of his head. He shut his eyes. “That was stupid.”

“Yes it was,” Lance agreed.

“Did you see Arthur?” Gwen asked sweetly. Merlin glared at her. “I’ll take that as a yes, with a date.”

“Mithian, actually,” he said sullenly.

“I thought you like her,” she frowned.

“I do. That’s the problem. She’s _awesome_.”

“Honey,” she cooed.

“Merls, hate to break it to you, but Pendragon’s straight as an arrow,” Will said.

“Didn’t even occur to me,” he said.

“Hey, I said it with your happiness in mind. He’s fucking prick. You’re not gonna get a happy ending if you keep up the pining.”

“I’m not pining!” he said, outraged. Lance struggled to hide a smirk. “Oh, fuck you guys. I don’t pine after straight guys, least of all Arthur Pendragon.”

“Yeah, we know,” Will said, rolling his eyes.

“Drop it,” Gwen interjected. She turned to Merlin. “Ignore him. We were just talking about taking a trip to the shore at the end of July. Lance’s parents have that vacation home down there and they said we could use it.”

“I’ll see if I can take off work, but—”

“We’ll make it first week of August, so you don’t have to get Val to change next month’s schedule,” said Lance. “Come on! It’ll be great. No work, no school, nothing to do but have a good time.”

“Last chance for all of us to hang out before we go to college,” Gwen cut in.

“And to get fried Oreos with me,” Will interrupted.

Merlin almost choked on a fry he’d stolen from Gwen. Last time they got fried Oreos, Will ate so many he had to get his stomach pumped.

“Oh, fine. I’ll see what I can do,” Merlin said reluctantly. They cheered so loudly the nearest waiter dropped his tray of French fries. They ended up paying for the ruined fry platter and eating the remainders.

Merlin didn’t even remember what had put him in a bad mood until he got a call at eleven.

“Where the fuck are you?” Val spat.

“I’m at the diner. My shift ended at nine,” Merlin said flatly.

“Gilli had to go to the hospital. I need you back here.”

“Seriously?”

“Fucking serious.”

“Is he okay? Shit. There’s only an hour left—”

“Get your ass over here, Emrys, or I might find myself loose-lipped when Pendragon comes by for the inspection tomorrow morning,” Val said.

“I’ll be there in five,” Merlin gritted out. Val hung up. Merlin drained the dregs of his milkshake wordlessly and gathered his stuff.

“He’s a bully,” Gwen said quietly.

“That’s not news.”

“He’s blackmailing you,” Will declared. Merlin paused. “He is. I heard him say it just now.”

“It’s the magic,” Merlin murmured. Their aggressive stances against him instantly disappeared. Merlin felt a little victorious. “I’m quitting in August. I can stick it out until then.”

“You shouldn’t have to _stick it out_ at all!” Gwen exclaimed.

“I can’t quit now, if that’s what you mean! It’s not an option,” Merlin said fiercely. “So drop it. Please.”

“Merlin….”

“See you guys later.”

* * *

The drive back was a blur. Merlin went straight to the counter and took his usual place overlooking the totally empty lobby. He frowned at the cardigan balled up on the counter. Merlin waited ten minutes before dragging it over and using it as a pillow.

_I’ll just rest my eyes for a minute_ , he thought.

He woke to someone slapping him across the back of the head none too softly.

“ _Mer_ lin.”

Arthur pulled the sweater out from under his head. Merlin’s head hit the glass loudly.

“Ow,” he said. Arthur smirked. “Oh, shove off. Ugh. What time is it?”

“Past closing. Your boss is _not_ going to be happy you left the doors open this late,” Arthur said, tutting. Merlin rolled his eyes and slid off his stool.

“You know your sweater would’ve been here in the morning,” said Merlin.

“I wanted it now,” Arthur replied. He leaned on the counter, watching Merlin as he put everything away.

“Maybe you should keep better track of your things,” Merlin grunted. He did everything in his power not to show Arthur he couldn’t unscrew one of the containers.

“I was at the hospital, idiot. I didn’t have time to grab my sweater when that guy keeled over,” Arthur said. Merlin paused and looked up at Arthur. He smiled slowly. “Are you having trouble?”

“Fuck off. I’m fine.”

“Right. Let me.”

“No, you’re not allowed to touch anything! Arthur! No, don’t, that’s—”

“Let go, Merlin, I’m just trying to help—”

“You’re _not_ helping!” Merlin yelped.

Arthur shouldered him a little harder and Merlin stumbled out of the way. Arthur crowed victoriously and leapt toward the machine. He reached for the cover Merlin had been grappling with. Merlin slapped his hand away.

“No. Down, boy.”

Arthur blushed ridiculously brightly and took a step back. Merlin felt strangely pleased.

“Fine,” he grumbled.

When Merlin finished shutting down his station, Arthur was still there, playing with the sleeves of his sweater still bunched up on the counter. Merlin stepped out of the concession stand.

“Er. Why are you still here?” Merlin asked curiously.

“Well, I was trying to help at some point—”

“You _weren’t_ helping.”

“I helped that guy Gilli earlier,” Arthur shot. “Doesn’t that count?”

“Well – yeah, it does,” Merlin blinked. “What happened, anyway?”

“I was on the way to the bathroom and he just keeled over. He was tired, apparently hadn’t eaten or drank a damn thing in over a day. His blood sugar was really low,” Arthur explained, quickly adding, “according to the nurses.”

“He’s diabetic,” Merlin realized. “Shit. I should’ve remembered that. He looked like crap when he got here earlier.”

“Well he wasn’t anywhere near DKA, so it wasn’t that bad,” Arthur said.

Merlin paused in the middle of opening the door.

“What?” Arthur said defensively.

“Nothing,” Merlin said.

“Spit it out.”

“You didn’t take AP Bio,” he said slowly.

“No.”

“But?”

“But nothing.” Arthur said. He looked away at the sound of a truck veering on a sharp curve into the parking lot. The headlights flash them as it turned.

Merlin turned back to lock the doors. He turned back ready to part ways with Arthur and tell him it was lovely seeing him again, really, but he just wants to know where Mithian was, and why he got her Sour Patch Kids, but he didn’t get the chance.

“Arthur!”

He lunged forward and grabbed Arthur’s arm. Merlin swung him back from the road onto the sidewalk. His magic slowed the truck and gave them just enough momentum to get the hell out of the way. The truck swerved badly, the horn ringing in Merlin’s ears as it narrowly missed them and made a beeline for the highway.

The sound of the gravel crunching under the tires faded. Merlin tried to catch his breath, but his heart was still racing and pound louder than the truck’s horn. His fingers curled instinctively around whatever was in his hand, which he quickly realized wasn’t air or paper but Arthur’s muscular arm, which apparently pillowed his head quite nicely.

Merlin sprang back, electrified. Arthur sat up slowly. He touched the back of his head and winced.

“Sorry,” he blurted. Arthur blinked, his eyes wide and terribly blue, even in the darkness of the parking lot.

“You saved me,” he said with a slight frown on his face. “I probably would’ve died if you hadn’t pulled me out of the way.”

“Er. Maybe? I dunno, you sound more like a medical expert than me.”

Merlin stood up. His entire right side hurt from hitting the curb and the asphalt, but it wasn’t anything he couldn’t ignore until he got home.

“That was….”

Merlin looked at Arthur, clutching his sweater, searching for words. It was unfortunately adorable. He grinned. Arthur scowled.

“Arthur. It’s fine. Don’t mention it. Just… good night,” Merlin said. He raised a hand to wave but he ended up shaking gravel off his sleeve.

Arthur was still looking at him with a bewildered scowl on his face when Merlin turned away. He could feel Arthur’s gaze burning a hole in his head all the way to his car. Merlin shuddered. He shook himself, revved the engine, and went straight home.

* * *

Merlin didn’t see Arthur for more than a week. By the time he turned up again, he’d had two visits from Morgana and Aithusa, and Gwen had forced him into her apartment so she could take measurements for the Wiccan costume. He’d gone to the doctor and learned that his nose healed very well in spite of the residual bruising. He’d also gone to the bank and seen that he still didn’t have enough money for new glasses. Merlin had gone hiking twice, once with Gwen, once with his mother. Merlin had even convinced Morgana to search for apartments in a lower price range.

What he hadn’t done was pine. Nope. He did not pine. He was so far from pining he was practically a maple tree.

He hurled a large rock into the lake with his magic, then caught it under surface and dragged it back up to shore. Merlin plopped onto his usual spot on the rotting log on the shore and looked out at the placid surface of the lake.

“I don’t like him. He’s an ass,” he said.

The water tickled his toes, pressing sand into the spaces between them.

“Fine. He’s an ass _sometimes_.”

The water splashed harder against him. Merlin scowled.

“You’re supposed to be on _my_ side.”

Merlin kicked at the sand. The water receded quickly. He ran a hand through his hair, which was actually growing out pretty nicely. Morgana was determined to do something to it, like his head was the Chia Pet she never had, though the idea was ridiculous, since she was Morgana Pendragon. If she ever wanted a Chia Pet, she probably had twelve of them. 

“Arthur, too,” Merlin grumbled. He picked up a handful of sand and threw it at the water. He caught a few particulates with his magic and swirled them over his palm. “He probably killed his Chia Pet, or stuffed it in a locker and forgot it there for two whole class periods.”

He kicked the sand a little harder.

Later that day, though earlier than usual, Arthur turned up at the theater, but not with a date – it was worse. He was there with friends from the football team, though not with the likes of Will and Lance. Rather, he had the Kay, Owen, and Ethan varieties of Asshole™ with him. Merlin focused harder on the latest issue of _Ultimate Spider-Man_.

Owen plucked it out of his hands. Merlin looked up and raised an eyebrow at him.

“Give it back.”

“I’m not finished with it yet,” Owen snapped. Ethan walked up beside him and grabbed a handful of the next page. He yanked _hard_ and the comic book ripped messily.

“Whoa! What the fuck was that for?” Merlin exclaimed.

Owen tossed the remains of the comic book at Merlin’s face. He leaned across and started to laugh.

“Who kicked your face?” he squinted. “They should know it’s looking better.”

“Should we fix that?” Ethan said with mock sympathy. Kay turned up out of nowhere and was reaching for Merlin’s shoulder when Arthur barreled through in a blur of golden hair.

“What the hell are you doing?” Arthur hissed.

“Just a little fun. Nothing big,” Kay said, holding his hands up.

“Threatening to break Merlin’s nose? That’s fun?”

“What’s it matter? Val’s got it in for the bastard anyway,” Kay glowered. “We’d just be saving him the trouble.”

“Is that so? Huh. Management’s not going to be happy to hear that,” Arthur said.

“Come on, it’s just a bit of—”

“Fun? Yeah. I heard you the first time and I still don’t get it,” Arthur said. “So, how’s this for fun? Get out of this theater or I’m having all of you banned from all Pendragon establishments.”

Merlin looked sharply at Arthur. The Pendragons owned the whole damn town.

“Arthur, it’s fine,” he whispered.

“Shut up, Merlin,” Arthur said out of the corner of his mouth. He looked at his friends. “Well?”

“You’ve fucking lost it,” Kay said, practically marveling at Arthur.

They left. Merlin let out a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding. He braced himself on the counter.

“Thanks,” he breathed.

“No problem,” Arthur said quietly. He reached for the tatters of his comic. “Sorry about that,” he added, turning the pages over in his hands. “Looks like a good one, too.”

Merlin looked up.

“You like comics?”

“On occasion. Morgana likes them. She leaves them around the house,” Arthur said nonchalantly. Merlin knew the telltale excited fidgeting of his fingers on the pages in his hands, torn up as they were.

“I see. Well, no spoilers then.”

“That’d be criminal,” Arthur grinned. He handed Merlin his comic. His smile fell a fraction. “Look, about the thing with the truck—”

“It’s fine,” Merlin said quickly. “You helped me out now so I’d say we’re even.”

“Not really,” Arthur grimaced.

“Well, let’s pretend.”

“ _Mer_ lin,” Arthur said. Merlin’s heart fluttered, no matter how much he told it not to because he was made of maple wood, goddamn it. “I’m sorry for the way I’ve treated you for the last four years.”

Merlin’s jaw dropped.

“I’m serious. I felt horrible after I got home,” Arthur said. “I realized you had no reason to save me that night because I’ve been a total ass to you.”

“Yeah,” Merlin agreed. “I mean, I hoped it wouldn’t take a near-death experience for you to figure that out, but better than not at all.”

“Like Kay and Ethan and Owen,” Arthur said. “God. I can’t believe I didn’t see it. They’re crap.”

“They stuffed me in a locker….”

“Right,” Arthur grimaced. “It’s not so funny now.”

“Nah. I love being crammed in small spaces. I enjoyed it greatly.”

“Hey, I’m trying to apologize here.”

“Sorry,” he said sheepishly. Arthur cracked a smile, reluctant as it was.

“ _Anyway_ , I only came here today with them because we’d made the plans a while ago,” Arthur went on. “I didn’t think they’d do anything.”

“I’m okay, Arthur. Really. It’s just a comic book.”

“They shouldn’t have—”

“No, but I’ve dealt with this for ages,” Merlin said breezily. “Not a big deal.”

“You shouldn’t have to _deal_ with anything like this.”

“Yeah, well, there’s not much I can do about it other than wait it out.”

“Til what?”

“College. Moving out of this awful town.”

“Right. Morgana mentioned you’re both going to NYU,” Arthur said, looking down at the counter.

“She wants us to live together.”

“Oh _god_.”

“Yeah. I mean, maybe, but dorming will probably end up being cheaper,” Merlin said.

“Dodge that bullet,” Arthur said solemnly, “if you value your life.”

“Right,” Merlin paused. “So, uh… apology accepted.”

“Yeah? Because you’re not getting another one, ever.”

“I figured.”

“Glad we understand each other,” Arthur grinned, clapping Merlin’s shoulder bracingly. He slammed forward into the counter, much to Arthur’s amusement. “You’re a fucking twig, Merlin,” he laughed, gripping Merlin’s shoulder so tightly he was nearly massaging it.

“I’m _lean_. I’m not weighed down by all that padding,” Merlin teased, jabbing at Arthur’s stomach. He jumped back almost a foot in the air. Merlin howled. “Ticklish! Arthur Pendragon is _ticklish!_ ”

“Shhh!”

“Who’s going to hear?” Merlin cackled. “The popcorn?”

“Oh, laugh it up.”

“I will. All day, in fact,” he replied with a saccharine grin. Arthur, surprisingly, returned it with something much more genuine.

“Good. See you around, Merlin.”

He left with a wave over his shoulder, leaving Merlin only a little baffled and mostly content with the world.

Only, Arthur returned an hour later with a fresh copy of the latest issue of _Ultimate Spider-Man_ and a demand that Merlin go for a run with him.

“Do _something_ physical, for fuck’s sake,” he said after expounding on the eternal benefits of physical activity for ten long minutes. Merlin forced his brain not to turn to mush at Arthur telling him to get _physical_.

“I hike!” he sputtered.

“Do something _legitimate_ , Merlin,” he groaned. “Get an appetite and get some meat on those bones. When’s your next day off?”

“The Fourth, which is, er, Saturday?”

“We’re going for a run. Come to my place at nine,” Arthur said, scribbling on the back of Merlin’s ripped up comic book. He paused, then added another line of writing. “Don’t be late.”

“Er. Why are we doing this?”

“Because Guinevere would beat you in a fight easily.”

“Uh, yeah? Gwen has a black belt,” Merlin said slowly. Arthur opened his mouth, then shut it. He gave Merlin a hard, stubborn look until he cracked, which was pretty inevitable, since he was absolutely _not_ made of maple, apparently.

“Fine. _Fine_. I’ll be there.”

“It’ll do you a world of good,” Arthur nodded. He left without another word, leaving Merlin with his new comic, Arthur’s address, and (apparently) Arthur’s phone number feeling completely confused about what just happened.

* * *

“The fuck? You’re ditching me to go run around with Pendragon?” Will shouted. “What the hell, Merlin!”

“Calm down, William. I’ll be back in time for lunch. Probably.”

“Sooner, if you jump him in the woods and he freaks out.”

“Why’re you being such an ass about this?” Merlin frowned. “He’s all right. We get along fine now.”

“You’re going to get your heart broken. We both know it’s basically made of glass.”

“Yeah, but I haven’t done anything stupid since sophomore year,” Merlin said pointedly. “I’ve got it under control. We’re just going for a run.”

“You’re just going so you can stare at his ass the whole time.”

“Hmm. Yes. Definitely.”

“Liar. You’re absolute _shit_ at lying, Merls,” Will said a withering sigh. Merlin heard him collapse on his rickety bed through the phone.

“I mean, given the opportunity to stare at his ass, who am I to—”

“Shut up, man. You’re falling for a straight dude,” Will said. Merlin elected to ignore him.

“Are Gwen and Lance still coming tomorrow?”

“Yep, so you’d better get the fuck out of Pendragon country before we eat all the food,” Will said. He hung up.

Merlin buried himself in his pillows and tossed his phone on the floor.

* * *

Arthur’s house was fucking  _huge_ . At least four of Merlin’s home could fit into it side by side. It sat on a gently sloping hill coated in fresh green grass, lined by a winding driveway that circled back to the road. There was a path leading back to a garage in the back cutting through the impeccable landscaping and gardens on the property. There wasn’t another house around; Merlin had driven down their private road for at least three miles to reach the house.

The front door opened brusquely.

“Were you just going to stare all day?” Arthur smirked. He was wearing shorts and a simple white t-shirt. His hair was still messed up, like he’d just rolled out of bed. Merlin’s mouth watered.

“I was going to ring the bell,” he muttered. Arthur only smiled more widely.

“Come on. I wanna beat the rain.”

Arthur led him off the driveway and directly into the woods down the side of the hill. Merlin could see the lake where he usually went to relax and practice magic from up there – it wasn’t far at all. At the bottom of the hill they stumbled onto a barely-there path cutting through the trees; the path probably encircled the lake. Arthur started to run, so Merlin followed.

They were silent most of the way, the quiet broken only by Arthur occasionally shouting at Merlin to keep up and his responding retort. Merlin focused on the thudding of his heart, the repetitive motions of his body, the sound of his shoes hitting the ground. They made it a third of the way around the lake before Merlin ended up wheezing and tripped over his feet. The mud he landed in was soft, at least.

“Ow,” he said as he unstuck himself from the ground. Arthur materialized before him, out of breath but clearly from laughing. He grabbed Merlin’s hand and hauled him to his feet.

“I was wondering when you were going to trip,” he said.

“Oh, thanks,” Merlin said sourly. He took two steps before his right leg decided not to work. He pitched forward and landed right back in the mud. “Excellent. This is great.”

Arthur helped him up and pulled him over to the water’s edge. He shoved him back on the sand.

“Give me your leg.”

“What? Why?”

“To make sure nothing’s wrong, dumbass,” Arthur said. Merlin sat back and let Arthur check him over. He was too focused on not popping a boner to question Arthur about his apparent medical interests again until after he said, “You’re fine, you big baby. Just a klutz.”

“Can we sit a bit, then?” he asked.

“If we must,” he sighed.

“This isn’t so bad,” Merlin said. “This running business.”

“Told you.”

“I wouldn’t get up at nine to do it, though.”

“Tough luck, then. We’re going again next time you’ve got time off,” Arthur said. Merlin turned and gaped at him.

“You’re serious.”

“Oh, yes.”

“Why? Why me?”

“Because – well, I think, if things had been different in school we might’ve gotten on,” Arthur said, eyes fixed on a point on the water’s surface.

“You… want to be friends? That’s what this is?”

“Eh. Not really. I’ve just dumped most of my friends and you were the next thing I saw, so it was your lucky day, really.”

“So what you’re saying is you imprinted on me?”

“What? No! That’s weird. None of that Twilight crap.”

“I meant what baby ducks do….”

“Not much better, Merlin.”

Merlin was laughing when he shoved Merlin over onto the sand. He caught Arthur grinning before he trained his face back into his usual expression.

“I took the AP Bio test,” Arthur said suddenly. “I like Bio a lot. Mithian tutored me.”

“Oh.”

Well, that made sense.

“Wait. Why didn’t you just take the class?” Merlin asked after a moment.

“My father,” Arthur grimaced. “He’s pretty set on me doing Econ and studying it at college and taking over the family business.”

“Is that what you want?”

“I thought so, until I volunteered at the hospital last summer. Morgana told me to get out of the house and I couldn’t find any other place that wasn’t under dad’s name. It… changed things for me,” Arthur said softly. “I lost my mom. She died giving birth to me. Something went wrong with the delivery. Some part of me always wanted to….”

He trailed off. Arthur took a breath, and seemed to hold it.

“To do that?”

“What?” Arthur said suddenly.

“That. Save people. Make sure they don’t end up like your mom.”

“Maybe. I guess,” Arthur murmured. He throws a handful of sand at the water. “Dad always told me it was selfish, that I didn’t want to do it for the right reasons.”

“Fucking bullshit.”

“That’s colorful language for you, Merlin.”

“That’s nothing,” he grinned. “Your dad’s way off base. You do what you want, Arthur. When you get to college, you have the chance to choose how you want to live your life.”

“It’s not that simple,” he said, voice strained.

“It can be,” Merlin said. “Would he cut you off if you went after Bio instead of Econ?”

“Maybe, but I’ve got enough money in my savings to pay for school until I get a job,” Arthur said. Merlin nodded, impressed. “I’ve given it thought. Trust me.”

“I know. So… why not?”

“I’m all he’s got. Morgana’s not doing this business shit. She told him that from the start. I’m all he’s got left now.”

“You’re not going to die if you do this,” Merlin frowned. “Being a doctor or a researcher or whatever – it’s huge, and it’s admirable.”

“What about you?” Arthur asked.

“Me? Bio, too. Research, hopefully.”

“And? Gallatin’s all about making up your major, according to Morgana.”

“Er, yeah. I’m still working on it,” Merlin replied. He stood up and tested his leg. “I feel fine. Let’s keep going, yeah?”

Arthur jumped up and sprinted away. Merlin barely kept up, but since Arthur looked happy about it, he felt pretty all right.

* * *

Arthur turned up at the theater just as often as before, though less frequently with a date, and those were the only times he actually came to see a movie.

“I’m just popping by,” or “My dad sent me to bring papers to Val,” were his usual excuses, to which Merlin usually rolled his eyes.

“You’re just here to annoy me again,” he always said. Arthur never denied it. At least he almost always bought popcorn to eat while loitering by the concession stand, though recently he took to throwing it at Merlin when he wasn’t looking.

Another plus was that Val stopped threatening him, now that he saw Merlin was friends with both of the Pendragon kids. Merlin was counting down the days until Gaius would return from sick leave and Val would go back to his usual post of not having the authority to harass Merlin.

“Gaius isn’t coming back,” Arthur told him with a frown when Merlin mentioned his hopes and dreams for his last month at the theater. “He was doing fine after the heart attack but he decided to retire.”

“Is Val getting the position permanently?”

“Yeah,” Arthur said. “Sorry about that.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Merlin said. He picked up a piece of popcorn Arthur had thrown that missed and threw it away. “So. How’s it going on the quest to date every girl in our graduating class?”

Arthur choked on his soda.

“I’m _not_ on a quest!”

“You sure? Because I think I’ve seen you bring – hang on, I kept a tally – ah! You’ve brought _seventeen_ different girls here on dates since graduation,” Merlin said, brandishing the record he kept in the back of his Sudoku book.

“Give me that!”

Arthur ripped it out of his hands and glared at the tally marks. He tossed it back at Merlin.

“Not a quest. I’m just—”

“Maximizing your chances of getting laid?” Merlin supplied. Arthur choked on his soda again. “You might want to stop drinking that.”

“Shut _up_ , Merlin,” he growled.

“Alright, fine!”

“I didn’t _realize_ —”

“Okay! Sorry. I thought you’d known….”

“Can we drop this now?”

“Yeah, but I don’t know why you’re miffed. Nothing wrong with wanting to get laid, or dating a bunch of people, so long as you’re not being an ass about it,” Merlin said. Arthur’s lips pressed tightly together, like he was trying very hard not to yell.

“Merlin….”

“Shut up?”

“You guessed it.”

Merlin looked up at the _Young Avengers_ poster, which was in its last week at the theater.

“Seen it yet?” Arthur asked. His sour tone sounded like it was receding.

“Nah. Can’t really see movies when you’re working the stand all the time,” Merlin said wistfully. “I’ll stream it online.”

“Morgana said Gwen’s doing something with _Young Avengers_ for New York Comic-Con.”

“Yeah. She’s making costumes for us,” he said with a faint laugh.

“I think she dragged Morgana into it.”

“Oh, god. Really?”

“I can’t imagine another reason why Morgana had a replica of that bow in the poster,” Arthur said, pointing at Kate Bishop. Merlin groaned.

“Gwen is getting out of control.”

“Which one are you?”

Merlin pointed. “The one with the red cape-thing.”

“Looks like those scarves you always wear,” Arthur said, squinting at the poster.

“That’s what Gwen said,” he mumbled.

Arthur looked between Merlin and the poster a few times before nodding in approval.

“You’ll look good.”

“He’s in fucking Lycra or skin-tight leather,” Merlin moaned, dropping his head to the table. “I can’t believe I let Gwen talk me into this.”

“Don’t sweat it,” said Arthur, his low voice suddenly close to Merlin’s ear. “Like I said, you’ll look _good_.”

Merlin looked up slowly.

Arthur was halfway out the door and waving over his shoulder before Merlin could blink and process what Arthur said. In an attempt to do so, his brain shut down and a soft confused buzz seemed to overtake his hearing.

* * *

After work, he called Gwen immediately.

“Hey, Merls. You wanna come by? I think your costume’s almost done and I want to fit it,” Gwen said over the roar of the sewing machine.

“Be there in ten.”

He sped to Gwen’s apartment. Her dad was cooking dinner when he got there.

“Gwennie’s in her workroom,” he said when he opened the door for Merlin. “Will you stay for dinner?”

“My mom’s probably expecting me—”

“Actually – ah, Hunith will be coming here for dinner,” Thomas said with just enough nervousness for Merlin to read the word _DATE_ all over his face.

“Got it,” Merlin nodded. “Cool. I think Gwen and I were going to meet Lance and Will at the diner, though.”

“All right,” Thomas said, sounding more than marginally relieved.

Merlin slipped past him and ran into Gwen’s workroom. He shut the door behind him loudly enough to startle Gwen out of her bubble of concentration.

“You look like you’ve had a weird day,” she said.

“Yeah,” Merlin said, throwing himself on the floor.

“There might be pins down there.”

He moved onto the couch.

“Your dad’s having my mom over for dinner. It’s a _date_.”

“Yeah, apparently they decided to go for it a few hours ago,” Gwen said. “I think it’s kind of sweet. They’ve been friends for ages.”

“Definitely,” Merlin said emphatically. “Just definitely _not_ what I was expecting when I got here.”

“So there’s something more?”

Merlin nodded. He felt like he was going to burst. He threw himself headfirst into the pillow on the couch.

“Arthurflirtedwithme,” he said into the pillow.

“Louder, Merlin.”

“No.”

“ _Merlin_.”

Gwen pulled the pillow out from under his face. He fell onto a stray Cheeto.

“What did Arthur do, love?” Gwen asked gently.

“He – he’s a bastard,” Merlin said with a hysteric laugh. “He fucking told me I’d look good as Wiccan! In that bloody leather jumpsuit! He told me _twice_!”

“Arthur… flirted with you.”

“Yeah,” Merlin sighed.

“And?”

“And then he ran out.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah.”

“ _Wow_. He’s—”

“Don’t say it. We don’t know if he’s just messing with me or having some sexuality crisis.”

“Or he might just be a closeted homosexual like his sister,” Gwen said plainly. “She went ahead and made out with her friend, by the way. Morgana’s probably going to tell you all about it tomorrow. Fair warning.”

“Why did the Pendragons have to adopt _me_?”

“More like you adopted them, Merlin,” Gwen said. She patted his shoulder. “Arthur’s really not as shitty as he seems, right?”

“Yes.”

That was an understatement. If there was anything Merlin had learned from Arthur turning up at the theater all summer and talking to him even though he was _working_ – he learned that Arthur was really something special. He was _good_ , and deserved a hell of a lot more than what he’d made himself out to be in high school.

“Did he sound like he was messing with you?”

“No,” Merlin said. “He sounded dead serious, actually.”

“Would he mess with you like that?”

“He teases about everything else but he doesn’t touch the gay thing. He knows people were shitty enough about it at school.”

“I mean, he was kind of the reason the sophomore year rumor drama happened,” Gwen said with a frown.

“Yeah,” Merlin sighed, “but he’s not like that. Not really.”

“I can see,” she said softly. “I believe you that he’s not as big of a prick as Will claims he is, and I don’t think he’s messing with you. I just want you to be careful.”

“I know.”

“We’re all moving away in a month, Merlin.”

“I know,” he said, softer now.

He hated that, for the first time, he truly felt sad about leaving. That wasn’t supposed to happen. Merlin was supposed to be excited to get the hell out of Camelot and start his new life in New York and be himself, but because of Arthur Fucking Pendragon, he couldn’t be happy about it. It meant leaving the bastard behind. Maybe he wouldn’t even turn up at the theater again. Maybe he’d panic and stay away from Merlin screaming _NO HOMO_ to the high heavens.

Gwen stayed quiet, just holding Merlin’s hand, until she jumped up and said, “Ready to become Wiccan?”

Merlin eyed the pile of black and red fabric on her workbench warily, but saying no to Gwen was basically impossible.

* * *

Merlin was having lunch with Morgana two days later when Arthur turned up. He approached them where they were sitting in Morgana’s trunk with Aithusa, as usual.

“Arthur,” Morgana beamed. “Care to join us?”

“You’re early,” Merlin said through a mouthful of food. He offered Arthur a cookie. He leaned against the car and accepted it graciously.

“I’m heading out to my college later. I wanted to stop by before I go,” Arthur said.

“Where’re you going again?”

Arthur paused, mid-chew.

“BU,” Morgana supplied. Arthur looked hesitant.

“About that… Maybe not anymore?”

“What? What happened?” she exclaimed.

“I’m looking into transferring.”

“Seriously? Why?”

“Other schools have better programs for… Bio and Biomed,” Arthur said. He looked sharply at Morgana. She slurped her soda loudly.

“Which ones?” she asked.

“I’m still working on a list,” Arthur said. “Nothing’s set yet. I might stay at BU and just switch programs.”

“That’s excellent!” Merlin beamed. Arthur rolled his eyes and took the rest of Merlin’s cookie from his hand. “Hey!”

Arthur split it in two and stuffed a half into Merlin’s mouth. He grinned smugly and wiped a few crumbs off his face. Merlin felt his whole body heat up. Arthur dropped his hand quickly and scrambled for his pocket. Morgana slurped her soda loudly again and looked away.

“Well,” Arthur said, clearing his throat. “I’ll be back on Monday, Merlin.”

“Okay,” Merlin said. He swallowed too quickly and had to gulp down soda to get the cookie to slide. “See you then.”

Aithusa tried to meow at Arthur, though she continued to be sadly voiceless. He smiled at her and petted her head before heading off, spinning his key ring on his index finger.

When he was gone, Morgana burst into laughter.

“What?” Merlin demanded.

“Gwen was right,” she said happily.

“About what?”

“Nothing you should worry about,” Morgana said, patting his head. Aithusa rubbed Merlin’s hand. He groaned and let his head drop against the side of the car, which only made Morgana laugh again.

“Changing the subject now,” Merlin declared.

“Oh, fine. You’re no fun. How’s Val treating you?”

“Can’t complain,” Merlin shrugged. “He’s been leaving me alone since you and Arthur started turning up.”

“Was he the one who broke your nose?” Morgana asked. Merlin took a second to long to answer. “I fucking _knew it_.”

“Morgana—”

“Don’t Morgana me! I’m telling my father to fire the bastard!” she shouted. “He can’t do that!”

“You can’t!” Merlin begged. “Really. He caught me using magic to fix one of the machines. That’s why he hit me. He’ll tell Uther about me if he thinks I’ve told anyone, and then everything’s going to go to hell for my mom and me.”

“That’s what Gwen said,” Morgana said. She ground her teeth and kicked the bumper of her car. “Argh! I hate him, Merlin.”

“Don’t even get me started.”

“What are we going to do about it?”

“Do? Nothing. We wait.”

“Merlin. Honey. Sometimes you just have to do what’s right and damn the consequences. This? Letting things roll off you is fine, but putting up with blackmail and threats and harassment at work is totally not fine. You have to do something.”

“I can’t. I need the money,” he said sullenly.

“I’m not telling you to quit. I’m telling you to _do something_.”

* * *

“Merlin! Got a minute?”

He looked up from his book – the latest Dan Brown novel – and saw Gilli approaching him with a file of papers under his arm.

“Gilli! How’re you feeling?” Merlin asked.

“Better,” he smiled. “So I’m quitting the theater. I’m just here to drop off the last few papers and get my check. Heading off to college in a few weeks means I’ve got no reason to hang around here anymore.”

“That’s great! Good for you. I’m looking forward to getting out of here myself,” Merlin added.

“Just a little longer, Merlin,” he said reassuringly. Gilli shifted his weight from foot to foot for a few seconds before say, “I’ll just come out and say it. I like you. A lot, actually. I was hoping to ask you out, now that we’re not coworkers.”

Merlin watched him blush, turning red right to his hairline. Gilli met Merlin’s eyes with such hope bordering on desperation than Merlin felt himself turn redder than a ripe tomato.

“That was a lot at once,” Gilli said, eyes turning huge. “I’ll, uh, give you some time. As much time as you need. Text me?”

Merlin felt his head move. He apparently nodded, because Gilli’s face split into a grin big enough to rival his ears.

_Shit_.

“Yo! Merls. We’ve gotta go,” Will yelled from the door. Merlin cringed.

“Shout louder, Will. I couldn’t hear you,” he called back. Will flipped him off.

“I’ll see you later?” Gilli said hopefully.

“Er. Sure?”

He bounded back to Val’s office. Merlin slipped out of the concession stand after the office door closed and hurried out to the street. Will, Lance, Gwen, and Will’s neighbor/sort-of-girlfriend-hook-up-person Carina were waiting for him on the curb. Lance’s car was packed to the brim.

“Come on. Get in the trunk,” Will said cheerfully, pulling Merlin by the arm toward the car.

“Nice try,” he laughed. “Have fun at the shore, guys. Make sure this one doesn’t eat his weight in fried Oreos again.”

“I’ll keep an eye on him,” Lance promised.

“You’d be eating them with him. Gwen, my lady, it falls to you.”

“Try again. I’ve been looking forward to shore food all year,” she said, rolling her eyes. She grinned at Merlin and dragged him down for a hug. “Try not to get into trouble while we’re gone.”

“Yes, _mom_.”

She slapped his head. Merlin bid his goodbyes to Lance and Will, and waved awkwardly at Carina. They piled into what little space was left in the car and puttered away down the highway. Merlin passed Gilli on the way inside. He gave Merlin another hopeful, bashful smile that made Merlin desperately wish he’d turned him down from the start.

* * *

Her name was Vivian. She was blond and petite and really quite pretty, physically. When she spoke, however, Merlin wanted to bash her head in, or drip butter on her to see how badly she’d react. Arthur looked like he was on the same page as Merlin.

It was Monday night, the same day as Arthur’s return from school, and here he was, at the theater on a date with Vivian, arguably among the hottest girls in their class at Camelot – or, a Merlin chose to see it, Girl #18.

“There’s too much butter in this,” she sniffed when Merlin handed her the popcorn. “Get me another.”

“So… you want light butter?”

“No, I want _normal_ butter, not drowning in butter,” she said. “Hurry up, Emrys. We’re going to miss our movie.”

“Wouldn’t want that,” Merlin said as neutrally as possible.

“I’ll take the buttery one. Just give her the one you were getting for me,” Arthur interjected. Merlin gave him a grateful look.

“Finally,” she snapped.

She dropped Arthur’s money on the counter and dragged Arthur aside. She pointed at Merlin once and put on her best puppy dog eyes, but Arthur apparently wasn’t buying it. Merlin smirked as he put the money away. When he looked up again, she was attempting to suck his face off and grip his ass with her weirdly tiny hands at the same time.

Merlin dropped all the change in his hand.

“Fuck,” he muttered. Merlin knelt behind the counter and tried three times to count the change he’d found, but he couldn’t do it. His heart was pounding hard enough to hurt. He pressed his forehead to the glass of the cabinet.

He knew this was going to happen. He fucking _knew it_ from the first day he realized he felt something other than moderate dislike for Arthur. Merlin sucked in a deep, steadying breath. It was fine. It was more than fine.

He was never going to hear the end of it from Will, but otherwise it was going to be just fine.

Of course, when Merlin stood up, they were still there, still kissing. Arthur looked a hell of a lot more into it than he had when Merlin first saw them. He felt ten times worse. His eyes burned and he felt properly sick to his stomach. Head spinning, Merlin slid his phone under the counter and ducked out of the stand for the bathroom.

When he got back out, Val cussed him out loudly and extensively for taking unauthorized breaks.

“It was an emergency. Want me to pass out like Gilli? Think that’d look good? No? Then let me fucking use the toilet.”

Merlin stormed away from Val and locked himself in the concession stand. Val fumed across the lobby, but he didn’t dare make a bigger scene than he’d already made. Val returned to his office looking absolutely _pissed off_. People hanging about the lobby eventually stopped staring at Merlin.

He took his phone and wrote out a text to Gilli, only to delete it all at the last second. Merlin groaned. He slid his phone down the counter. Someone stopped it.

“It’s going to fall off the counter and shatter into a million pieces one of these days,” Arthur said. His lips were still red and puffy. Merlin fiddled with the slushie dispenser.

“I could go for an upgrade. Smartphones are where it’s at, not plastic things with sliding keyboards,” Merlin replied.

Merlin poured himself a blue slushie. Arthur fidgeted, but Merlin paid him no attention.

“You’re upset with me,” Arthur said slowly. “Why?”

“I’m not.”

“I know you well enough, Merlin. You’re a shit liar,” Arthur said, jabbing at finger at Merlin’s chest. He glared at Arthur. “Just tell me.”

“It’s nothing.”

_“Mer_ lin.”

“Jesus, Arthur! What are you even doing out here? You’re on a date!” Merlin burst.

“I told her I went to the bathroom,” he said, puzzled.

“Classy, Arthur. Really.”

“What the hell’s wrong with you?” he shot back. “I went out of my way—”

“To what? Date every girl in the school? Be my friend? Annoy the living shit out of me by stalking me at work?”

“I’m not stalking you! I’m bored, for fuck’s sake!”

“Right,” Merlin said coolly. “You’re bored. That’s your excuse? For everything?”

“Yep.”

“Want to know what I think?”

“Do tell,” Arthur said, eyes narrowed.

“You keep coming to this stupid theater. You bring all your dates here. There are two other theaters in the area. There are three diners and a million other things to do, but you always come _here_ , and lately you spend half your time hanging around the stand rather than actually being with your date! So here’s what I think –you’re just coming here because of _me_.”

Merlin paused for breath, and very quickly realized that he shouldn’t have said all of that. Arthur, suddenly, went from annoyed to angry.

“You seriously think I’ve been coming here for you?”

“I said because of me, not for me,” Merlin said, brows furrowed.

“Same thing!”

“Not really, like, at all.”

“I – no. I’m not hearing this.”

Arthur backed away and started to stomp back to the theater, but Merlin wasn’t letting him get away, not when he saw something in his eyes that Merlin would have to be blind to miss. He hopped over the counter.

“Arthur, you’re a lot of things, but you’re sure as hell not a coward,” he said. He grabbed Arthur’s elbow and spun him around.

“I’m not—”

“You’re _not_.”

Arthur’s eyes widened.

“Don’t fucking toy with me if you don’t mean it,” Merlin said quietly. “I’m not putting up with this anymore.” 

“I’m not – what?” Arthur asked, carding through his hair in desperation.

“What do you want?” Merlin demanded. Arthur swallowed. Merlin released Arthur’s arm, but he refused to step back, even if they were standing close enough to make the heavily air conditioned lobby seem sweltering. “Because I know what I just saw. I’ve been there. Remember sophomore year? Lance. It was Lance I was more than _a little_ in love with. Will told me whenever it got too close to Lance figuring out how I felt, I had this look on my face. That’s what I just saw you do, Arthur. Don’t fucking _dare_ tell me I’m wrong.”

“I’m not a coward,” Arthur said, his voice thin but steady. “I’m not.”

_Right, which means I’m imagining things!_ he thought wildly. Merlin waited a full minute before taking a step back, the heat on his skin settling fast into a layer of cool embarrassment and regret. He probably was. He was precisely desperate enough for Arthur to feel something and only saw what he wanted to see. It wouldn’t have been the first time, and Merlin could accept that it most likely wouldn’t be the last.

He exhaled slowly.

“Go back to your date, all right? I’m sorry… for all of that,” he said, waving at the air. He looked around the mercifully empty lobby. Arthur looked up from his staring contest with the shitty carpet pattern.

“No.”

“No? I’m trying to apol—”

Arthur kissed him.

The sounds of cars exploding and sweet swelling violins exuding from nearby theaters fell away completely. But Arthur’s thumb tentatively brushing Merlin’s cheekbone was a firework setting off, and the sheer determination in his lips screamed louder than the tremble in his body.

Merlin yielded ever so slightly, shut his eyes, let him savor this _just for a moment_ , because it couldn’t be true. It couldn’t actually be happening. Arthur wasn’t actually kissing him there, in the theater, while his shirt was stained with butter and – yes. That was it. It couldn’t be happening, not while Arthur still tasted very much like Vivian’s cherry lip gloss.

With a gasp he tore himself away. He felt thirsty and bereft the moment he wasn’t touching Arthur again. A kiss, barely more than chaste, should _not_ make him feel like that, and it definitely shouldn’t make his magic threaten to go haywire.

Arthur, eyes round as saucers, chest heaving like he’d just swam a mile, watched Merlin.

“You’re here with Vivian,” Merlin croaked. “You should go back to her.”

“I don’t want to,” Arthur said immediately. “I—”

“Later, Arthur. Please. Don’t be a prick and ditch her at the beginning of the goddamn move,” he cut in, shocked at how tired he sounded. Arthur nodded.

“You’re right. For once.”

“Not true! You just never listen,” Merlin said. Arthur laughed in an open way Merlin had only ever seen him do around him. He was rosy and bright and it made Merlin want to kiss him and tell Vivian to piss off because at the rate they were going he’d never get to kiss Arthur’s neck and press words he definitely didn’t think he could say aloud into his golden skin, but oh _hell_ there was actually a chance it’d happen—

His lips tingled at the very thought. He touched his mouth without thinking. Arthur smiled and blushed red. Merlin smiled back.

* * *

Merlin and Arthur becoming  _Merlin and Arthur_ was a remarkably simple affair.

Merlin endured the rest of his shift in agony and absolutely did not glare at Vivian as she and Arthur walked out. At least she didn’t cling to him like a limpet that time. The next day, in the middle of one of Merlin’s rare short shifts during which he worried that he’d dreamt up the whole episode, Arthur turned up and hung around the stand, like it was any other day, minus the dramatic increase in brief but casual touches and accidental finger-brushing as they passed their game of tic-tac-toe between them.

Arthur dragged Merlin out of the theater as soon as it was 4pm and drove them out of town. They went out to a lake lined with trees over which distant mountains peeked. Arthur brought out some spray-can cheese and crackers – “Classy, Pendragon.” “Only the best for you, _Mer_ lin.” – sat them down on the sand and said,

“No distractions out here. No girls. No sisters or friends or parents. Just us. Is that okay?”

Merlin nodded, stunned.

“More than fine,” he said.

They talked it out. Merlin listened to Arthur, who apparently only just figured out he was bi, if not gay.

“This is entirely your fault,” he added. “My sexuality crisis.”

Merlin dropped the cheese can.

“Huh?”

“ _You_ , you idiot. I never looked at another guy until this summer,” Arthur said, looking away. The back of his neck flushed red. “It was fucking confusing.”

“Hey, I get it,” he said gently.

“I’m not ready to tell anyone I’m… whatever I am, Merlin,” Arthur said softly.

“Okay,” he said.

“Okay?”

“I’ve been there. I knew for ages I was gay before I actually came out,” Merlin said. “You do it when you feel comfortable.”

Arthur gave him a strange look that bordered on awe. He shook his head, smiling to himself. Arthur threw himself back on the sand and gave a great sigh.

“I wish we could stay out here forever. Forget parents and friends and work—”

“Just us?”

Arthur nodded. “Is that odd?”

Merlin shook his head.

“We’ve only got a month left in Camelot. That’s something, right?”

“Yeah, fat lot of good that’ll do,” Arthur snorted. “I’ll be in Boston and you’ll be in New York then.”

“Yeah,” Merlin sighed. He barely managed to hide his pleasure at Arthur thinking of the two of them beyond the end of the month. “Is it your dad you don’t want to tell?”

Arthur nodded. “I can’t be bothered about Kay and the others at this point. But my dad… he’s fucking terrifying. I’m already going to be in hot water for changing career plans. I don’t think I can handle telling him this, too.”

“What about Morgana? She’s probably screwing her lesbian friend as we speak.”

“Oh, _ew_. Don’t ever say something like that again.”

“Arthur, lesbian sex isn’t anything weird—”

“I _do not_ want to think about my sister having any kind of sex, Merlin,” he glared. Merlin laughed into his cracker.

“Oh, all right. But she won’t mind at all. She’ll be super supportive when you get around to telling your dad.”

“I’ll think about it,” Arthur grumbled, but Merlin could tell his words had sunk in. He grinned hugely. Arthur shoved him clear into the sand. Merlin rolled onto his back, unable to stop laughing. He got up hallway and pulled Arthur down with him. They landed in a heavy mess of limbs with random twigs and clumps of sand stuck between them. Merlin sat up on his elbows.

“You don’t have to do any of this if you’re not ready,” he murmured, and while he meant every word, his body wasn’t exactly hoping for Arthur to back away and swear to chastity for the near future. He couldn’t take his eyes off his goddamn mouth, especially as Arthur swallowed and licked his lips, his tongue darting out and enticing Merlin just a little closer. He caught himself and held still. Arthur smiled a little madly. He brushed some sand out of Merlin’s hair, his hand lingering on his face.

“No one can know. Not yet, at least.”

“I’m okay with that,” Merlin said. Arthur’s eyebrows crinkled.

“You’re sure? It’s not going to be fair to you.”

“To be honest, I don’t care. I… I care about you enough to be okay with keeping it a secret,” Merlin said.

Before Arthur could react, Merlin pressed forward and kissed him. While their first kiss had been a strike of lightning, quick and shocking and leaving Merlin with a fried brain, this was the beginning of a thunderstorm – rapid escalation, ample force and friction, noises that would echo in Merlin’s mind for hours, and, again, that electric spark that was always there when they shared a room, threatening to overtake them. When they came up for air, sweat and sand clinging to them, Merlin felt like they’d been set on fire, and every touch, smile, or word exchanged was a burst of oxygen on their flames.

“It feels different,” Arthur breathed. “Better. Than kissing a girl, I mean.”

“That’s what I thought, too,” Merlin smiled.

“Who did you make out with?” Arthur asked. He was very obviously fighting a scowl.

“Well, back before high school, I kissed this girl Freya at a party. That was my first time kissing a girl,” Merlin said. He ran his fingers lightly down the side of Arthur’s neck. He shuddered slightly above him. “At the same party, in the same game of spin the bottle, I kissed a guy. I didn’t know him. He was Freya’s friend from another school. But, somehow, it made all the difference. With Freya it just felt… forced. Like that’s what people were looking for, so I figured I’d give it a go, but it was shit compared to kissing Kevin.”

“He can’t have been that good if you were thirteen,” Arthur said, his scowl gearing up to a hundred percent. Merlin laughed. “What?”

“Don’t tell me you’re jealous of some kid I kissed years ago!”

“I’m not!”

“You are,” Merlin exclaimed.

“He sounds – shady.”

“Shady? We were thirteen!”

“I knew people doing drugs back then!”

“I really doubt he was on drugs.”

“Maybe _you_ were on drugs.”

“You’re clearly the one on drugs, Arthur,” Merlin said, rolling his eyes, but smiling nonetheless. “Since I’ve witnessed your dating efforts over the last few months, I really don’t have twenty questions for you.”

“Er. Sorry about that.”

Merlin shrugged, even though he honestly found his sheepishness stupidly sweet and ridiculous.

“Are we done talking?” Merlin asked. “Because we might want to get back to what we were doing before the rain starts.”

“That’s… true.”

“You’ve got a lot to learn in the ways of the gay, young padawan,” Merlin said sagely. Arthur hit his shoulder. “Ow! No hitting the Jedi master!”

“Don’t underestimate my power,” Arthur said in the most intense, absurd impression of Anakin he ever heard.

Merlin couldn’t stop laughing. They ended up throwing sand at each other instead of making out. The month of August was very young.

* * *

Things got simpler from then on out. Merlin’s friends were all at the shore, so Merlin spent all his time with Arthur and no one thought twice of it. They went for runs when he had time off, which was more often now that Merlin managed to tell Val off that one time and kept his nerve long enough to negotiate a better schedule. They usually found some part of their route to use for periodic chatting, making out, and groping.

Arthur was a very fast learner, and Merlin decided he couldn’t be bothered at all.

“I’ve made out with tons of girls, Merlin,” Arthur said while mouthing down Merlin’s neck. He snuck his fingers under Merlin’s shirt and teased at the skin on Merlin’s side. He squirmed, but Arthur only wedged himself more securely between Merlin’s legs, effectively pinning him to the tree.

“Yeah, but—”

“Just face it. I’ve had more experience than you,” Arthur said smugly.

Oh, no. Two could play at that game.

Merlin ran his hands down Arthur’s chest and teased his thumb under the waistband of his jogging shorts, going straight for the soft skin over his hipbones. It went straight to both of their cocks, and it was very easily observable. Arthur gasped. Merlin took it a step further, sliding his palm away from his hip and along the top of his thigh toward his prominent bulge.

Closing his hand lightly around the bulge in Arthur’s pants, Merlin leaned close to Arthur’s face, which seemed to be stuck between _oh fuck_ and _what the hell?_

“You sure about that? How many hand-jobs have you given? Or blowjobs?” Merlin whispered. He’d given and received a total of two, but Arthur didn’t need to know that just yet. “I doubt you’ve rimmed anyone. Maybe you’ve fingered yourself, but it’s different when someone else is doing it to you, working you open _really_ slowly—”

“Merlin,” Arthur said suddenly. It came out strangled. His hips bucked forward and involuntarily ground his hard cock against Merlin. A bead of sweat rolled down the side of Arthur’s face. Merlin leaned forward and pressed his lips to the trail, taking the sweat away, smiling against the side of Arthur’s face.

“Yes?” he said sweetly. He lifted his hand from Arthur’s pants and spread his palm across his stomach. Arthur whimpered.

“I’m going to come in my pants if you don’t _shut up_ , I swear to _fucking_ god.”

He grinned and ducked out of Arthur’s arms, sprinting away. He was hard, which made running pretty damn uncomfortable, but the knowledge that Arthur was close behind (in more than one way) was extremely satisfying.

* * *

By the end of the week, Morgana caught Merlin and Arthur out on one of their runs when they weren’t actually running, to which she said,

“Fucking finally,” and then walked away, shielding Aithusa’s eyes as she held her in her arms.

“Did you see the size of that hickey on her neck?” Merlin whispered as she walked. Arthur reached up and slapped the side of Merlin’s head.

“Stop mentioning my sister having sex.”

“Well, we both have hickeys, and we haven’t had sex, so that’s not really an assumption you can make,” Merlin said with a mischievous grin. Arthur rolled them over so he straddled Merlin’s hips. A pointed rock dug into Merlin’s back. “Ow. We really ought to consider doing this stuff on softer surfaces, like beds, or even actual floors.”

“Father’s going away this weekend,” Morgana shouted from further down the shore.

“Yeah, but you’ll be there,” Arthur shouted back.

“I’m going to Mithian’s.”

Both Merlin and Arthur froze.

“Mithian? That’s who you’ve been seeing?” Arthur said, scrambling to his feet.

“Yeah? Who did you think?”

“I went out with her a few weeks ago!”

“She’s gay, honey, and we’ve been really close friends for a lot longer than she was your tutor,” Morgana said, walking up to Arthur. She patted his shoulder with extreme sympathy on her face. “Don’t look so put out.”

“I’m not. I’ve got Merlin, haven’t I?”

Merlin blushed, looking at the ground happily until he realized Arthur was actually _asking_.

“You do,” he said quickly. He tried to stand but Arthur swept in and pulled him to his feet. He tripped over a rock by his foot and latched onto Arthur’s shoulder.

“Honestly, Merlin, what would you do without me?” Arthur said witheringly. His hand was light and comforting on Merlin’s side.

“Marathon Star Wars, probably.”

And that was how on the weekend with Uther, Morgana, and all of Merlin’s friends out of town Merlin ended up staying at Arthur’s marathoning Star Wars (the original trilogy, of course) until the wee hours of the morning. They woke up not quite knowing how they’d gotten so closely entwined, even with pillows and whatnot between and around them in their blanket fort. They were warm and comfortable. Merlin woke feeling incredibly content, pillowed on Arthur’s chest, looking up to see Arthur gazing at him with brightness in his eyes. He looked _happy,_ frankly, far happier than Merlin had ever seen him.

The only downside to this arrangement was the boner situation.

Merlin considered offering to take care of Arthur’s – he’d given a blowjob once, and the guy had said he was a fucking natural and really, totally _incredible_ – but Merlin could tell he just wasn’t there yet, and he could see that Arthur was grateful for his consideration.

He always got that look of almost-awe on his face at moments like that. He was a bit like the dawn when he didn’t try to hide himself.

It scared him that he felt like that after hardly a week. Merlin shut his eyes and enjoyed being as they were for the ten minutes he had before he needed to leave for work.

* * *

Merlin’s mom was out with Gwen’s dad one night. Naturally, Arthur came by for the first time and they made it twenty minutes into  _The Fellowship of the Ring_ before they went up to Merlin’s room. They barely made it to Merlin’s tiny bed.

Arthur kissed him hungrily, making Merlin’s magic soar as he ravaged Merlin’s mouth. He threaded his fingers through Arthur’s soft hair and tugged him lower. He loved feeling the weight of Arthur’s body on top of his. He arched up slightly to meet him and their groins brushed, sending a hot spark through Merlin. He wiggled away, but Arthur’s hand on Merlin’s hip stopped him. Merlin pulled back a fraction to look at him.

“What?” he asked.

“I – you—”

“Eloquent as always.”

“Shut up. I meant – fuck, I’m doing this wrong,” Arthur said, dropping his head to Merlin’s shoulder. Merlin laughed. Arthur pinched his side in retaliation.

“Hey!”

“Serves you right,” he said with a scowl. He glanced away. “I want – well, frankly, I want to stop needing to wank so often.”

“Oh,” Merlin blinked. It took him a moment. Arthur’s face was bright scarlet. “ _Oh!_ ”

“Is that…?”

“Yeah, I’m fine with that,” Merlin said. “Are you sure? It’s only been, like, a week and a half.”

“Nothing intense yet. Just… goddamn it, Merlin. You’re just driving me mad,” he burst. “You’re gorgeous. Fucking incredible, actually. I want—”

“Me, too,” Merlin said hoarsely. He pushed Arthur’s hair off his face, messing it up completely. He dropped his hand from his head and grabbed Arthur’s hips, lining them up with his own. Arthur’s lips parted, a sound hanging in the back of his throat. “You have no idea how much I want this, too. But I’d wait, if that’s what you wanted.”

Arthur shook his head, his breath coming a little less evenly now.

“Shut up, Merlin.”

Merlin grinned wickedly.

“Good.”

Arthur bore down and kissed him hard, their mouths mashing together almost painfully. Arthur thrust his tongue into Merlin’s mouth and teased him to no end. Merlin moved against Arthur, with him, quickly catching on to his well-practiced rhythm, only stopping when things got too hot and sweaty for shirts to stay on. He pulled at the hem of Arthur’s shirt and before Merlin could blink he was faced with essentially the body of a Greek god.

“Impressive, I know,” Arthur smirked.

“Fuck off,” Merlin moaned. “I’m warning you now, I don’t look a damn thing like that,” he said, waving at Arthur’s muscular chest and abs. He brushed the golden hairs on his chest by accident and made a desperate grabbing motion at his pectoral. He dropped his hand quickly.

“You just did that Peggy Carter-Steve thing, after he got the serum,” Arthur said, starting to smile. He looked smugger than ever.

“You’re not Steve Rogers, you ass,” Merlin said, falling back on the bed.

“Don’t you wish. Get up. You can’t keep your shirt on if I took mine off.”

“Really? Because it’s not going to be an improvement to the aesthetic of our situation here.”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” Arthur said, yanking Merlin upright. He straddled Merlin’s lap, knees on either side of his narrow hips. He gazed at Merlin, mocking at first, and then serious, until Merlin unfolded his arms and let Arthur reach for his shirt. Merlin shut his eyes until he heard the shirt fall with a thud on the floor next to the bed.

“I’m not much. You said it yourself, I’m skin and bones.”

Arthur remained silent, his hands grazing the skin on Merlin’s sides as they hovered.

“Right. This is awkward now. Can I have my shirt back?”

A moment later Merlin found himself pinned to the bed, his wrists held over his head by Arthur’s strong grip. Arthur kissed him silent, the intensity in his mouth almost desperate, almost sad. He pulled back. Merlin followed his lips eagerly, even though he was happily and thoroughly out of breath.

“What was that?” he asked, dazed.

“You’re an idiot, Merlin.”

“Er. Thanks?” he frowned.

“You’re fucking beautiful,” Arthur said, his eyes moving slowly down Merlin’s body in a way that made him shiver under the attention. “You’re being an idiot if you think I can’t see that.”

“I mean, _I_ don’t see it—”

“Let me convince you,” Arthur said. Merlin hesitated. “Please.”

Merlin gave a tiny nod.

He started at his jaw, working his way down Merlin’s neck, murmuring quiet things that made his heart swell and his breath stutter. Arthur laughed when he found just how sensitive Merlin’s nipples were and spent a solid five minutes teasing him with his tongue.

“ _Fuck_ , you should _not_ be this good,” Merlin gasped, writhing under Arthur’s attention. He moved his mouth to the middle of Merlin’s chest and pressed a soft kiss there. He moved lower to his stomach, trailing his lips, pausing while Merlin caught his breath.

“I bet you’re glad I am, though,” Arthur murmured.

“Let’s not talk about your eighteen girlfriends,” Merlin stuttered as Arthur nipped his earlobe gently. Arthur huffed into the sensitive space behind Merlin’s ear.

“I didn’t sleep with any of them.”

“Oh?”

“My brain was already starting to have a gay crisis,” Arthur said.

“Couldn’t get it up, could you?” Merlin smirked.

“Not without thinking of you,” Arthur grinned. He ran his fingers through Merlin’s hair and pushed it off his face. “Doesn’t mean I haven’t had practice.”

“Never said you didn’t,” Merlin laughed.

“You’re still an idiot,” he said. Arthur reached for the clasp of Merlin’s jeans and pried it open. Merlin’s breath caught in his throat, his heart hammering at the wall of his chest. “You think I’m gorgeous. I think you’re gorgeous. If I didn’t love all this about you, I wouldn’t find you so fucking sexy – especially now.”

Arthur looked up and fucking winked at Merlin before pulling his jeans down his legs and out of the way.

Merlin stared. Arthur sat back and removed his jeans, too, revealing an impressive boner tenting his boxers.

“Proof enough for you?” Arthur asked. That he sounded _that_ wrecked already drove any and all doubts out of Merlin’s head.

He surged up and grabbed Arthur’s face, pulling him into a searing kiss. He flipped them over so he was on top, slotting into the space between Arthur’s legs and grinding down relentlessly on him. Arthur’s skin against Merlin’s made him feel like the whole damn world was on fire, and they were the burning wicks at the center of it all. They were going to burn forever. Merlin’s magic bubbled up as their movements got less rhythmic and far more desperate. Arthur flipped them, wedging himself between Merlin’s legs and reaching for his cock through his boxers. Merlin’s hips thrust hard at the first contact.

“Off. Take them off,” he breathed. Arthur paused. “If you want, that is.”

“I do.”

“This is fucking gay, Arthur. Like, keeping my boxers on doesn’t change that.”

“I know,” he said with a fierce scowl.

As if to prove it, he sucked hard on Merlin’s neck, right at the junction with his jaw. In a quick motion Arthur threw Merlin’s boxers on the ground and quickly shucked his own. His breath came hard and fast as he hovered over Merlin, their cocks both hard and red, leaking from the tips, but not quite touching yet. Merlin drank in the sight of Arthur like this, sweat dripping down his neck, his fringe stuck to his forehead, muscles taut as a loaded bow, his eyes dark with lust for _him_.

“Okay?”

Arthur rolled his eyes at Merlin and slid up Merlin’s body, bringing their hard lengths to full contact. They moaned, Arthur’s fingers digging into Merlin’s side as hard as Merlin’s pressed into his shoulders. Merlin moved his hips, sliding their cocks against each other again. Arthur inhaled and smiled against Merlin’s neck.

“This is – wow,” he breathed.

“Yeah,” Merlin agreed. Nothing he’d ever done felt like this. He kissed Arthur perhaps a little too chastely, given their positions, but that quickly stopped being a problem.

They moved faster and harder, regaining the rhythm they’d set earlier, only it was a thousand times more intense, the friction they created more like sparks of lightning between their bodies. Their kissing degenerated to sloppy mouthing at each other’s faces and biting lips. It made stars burst before Merlin’s eyes. He felt Arthur’s hips hitch and falter against his, their cocks slick as the slid against each other. Merlin whimpered, frustrated, and reached between them. He took both of their lengths together in his hand and started pumping them hard, gripping Arthur’s firm buttock with his free hand.

“ _Fuck_. Shit, this – I’m not—”

Merlin shook his head.

They came hard and fast, hot come spattering both their chests. Merlin cried out. Arthur muffled himself by biting into Merlin’s shoulder and clinging to him for dear life. Merlin could barely breathe or see for what felt like hours as he came down from the high. All he felt was Arthur and the come on their chests. They panted, both completely winded. He could feel Arthur smiling into the crook of his neck.

“I’m surprised we lasted that long,” he murmured after a while. He trailed a finger down Merlin’s chest and spread the come around. Merlin quivered and felt himself already start to harden. Arthur grinned, feeling it too.

“You good?”

“Hell yeah. I’m great,” Arthur said, stretching and climbing up to Merlin to rest on the pillow.

“Was it all you ever hoped for in your gay sex fantasies?”

“Well… there were other things I was hoping—”

“We’ll get there,” Merlin said, smiling. Arthur grinned and hit Merlin in the face with the pillow. “Oi! Quit that!” 

He tried to wrestle the pillow away but he ended up on top of Arthur, well on his way back to full mast. Arthur was already there.

“You know you love it,” Arthur beamed.

“Yeah, yeah.”

Merlin bent down and kissed his smiling mouth, just because he could. Arthur ran his hands up and down Merlin’s back, venturing lower and lower with each pass.

“I’ve been wanting to touch you like this for so long,” Arthur said, laving Merlin’s collarbone, cupping his buttock and squeezing. Merlin made a delighted sound he didn’t know he could make, his groin bearing down on Arthur’s involuntarily. Merlin rested his forehead against Arthur’s, which felt more intimate than anything they’d done so far.

They kissed for a few minutes before the drying come on their chests starting to feel uncomfortable. Merlin climbed off and ducked into the bathroom to get a wet washcloth, Arthur watching him go from the bed with an appreciative look on his face, when he caught a glimpse of a car pulling into Merlin’s driveway. If it was his mom, it wouldn’t have been a big deal; it’d have been super awkward, she’d have understood and kept the secret to boot. It’d have been just fine.

Will shouting Merlin’s name as he ran up to the house brandishing his spare key was absolutely _not fine_.

“Oh, fuckballs.”

Merlin ran back to the room, his erection quickly flagging. He grabbed his boxers and started throwing on clothes.

“Tell me that’s not a car in your driveway,” Arthur said suddenly when he heard doors slam outside. The doorbell rang repeatedly, as was Will’s habit.

“Looks like everyone’s back from the shore,” Merlin said grimly. “Hand me my shirt.”

Arthur threw it at him.

“I’ll get them out. Just… stay here. And put some pants on in case Will decides to come upstairs.”

“Would he?” Arthur squeaked, jumping off the bed instantly.

“He would,” Merlin said gravely. “You’re welcome to hide in my closet, if it comes to it. No pun intended, of course.”

“Merlin!”

“Just stay quiet for a few minutes, okay? It’ll be fine,” Merlin added as he looped a belt through his shorts. He paused at the door, then bounded back to Arthur and kissed him gently. “Trust me, okay?”

“I do,” Arthur blinked.

“Good,” Merlin beamed. “Just hang tight.”

Merlin took two steps at a time as he raced to the door just as Will stared fitting the key into the lock. He wrenched it open. Will was arguing with Gwen about something while Lance looked on like the martyr he was. They all stopped when Merlin practically tripped onto the porch.

“Hey,” he said breathlessly. “How was the shore?”

“Fun. Sunny. No stomach pumps this time,” Will said. “What the fuck’s in your hair?”

Merlin reached up and felt something dry and crusted in his hair. He brushed it out and forced himself not to turn the color of a raspberry slushie. It didn’t work.

“Uh… eggs, maybe? I was baking.”

“Right… ‘cuz that sure looked a lot like _not eggs._ ”

Will’s smile quickly turned into a leer.

“So. Who’ve you got up in your room?”

“No one!” Merlin nearly shouted. Gwen’s eyebrows shot up. “I mean, no one. It’s nothing. Look, I needed to finish doing some stuff for my mom. Want to grab food at the diner?”

“Milkshakes sound good,” Lance said. Gwen elbowed him.

“Merlin, love. You’re literally the worst liar ever,” she said sweetly. “Plus—”

The door opened and Arthur stepped outside, looking like they hadn’t just been having sex and getting ready for round two a total of three minutes ago. Instead, though, he had flour on his shirt and hands.

“Arthur,” Gwen blinked.

“We were baking,” he said by way of explanation.

“Why?” Will demanded. Arthur stiffened beside Merlin.

“Because it’s Hunith’s birthday in a few days,” Arthur said slowly. Merlin had absolutely no idea how Arthur knew that, unless he’d mentioned it some random afternoon ages ago. Will certainly looked surprised, judging by how low his jaw dropped.

“Right,” Will said, slowly closing his mouth, “but why are _you_ here?”

“Fuck off, Will,” Merlin said, rolling his eyes. “We’re getting milkshakes. You want in, Arthur?”

“I, uh—”

Arthur’s stomach growled quite loudly.

“That’s an answer,” Merlin laughed.

“We’ll meet you there in ten, Merls,” Will said. He grabbed Lance’s arm and yanked him toward the car. Gwen remained on the porch, laughing into her fist.

“You know I won’t say a damn thing, but you might want to switch shirts,” Gwen whispered. Merlin looked down – and, yes, he was wearing Arthur’s shirt: bright red and clearly a bit too big for him. Arthur, on the other hand, fit Merlin’s shirt a hair too snugly. Not that Merlin minded very much.

Gwen skipped off the porch and back to the car. Will pulled out the driveway and sped off.

“That—”

“Don’t, Merlin,” Arthur cut in. He turned back and went into the house. Merlin felt a chill settle over him. He followed Arthur inside. “I should go home.”

“No, wait – look, we’ll change clothes and get food. It doesn’t have to be weird.”

“She knows! How the fuck did she figure it out?”

“Gwen’s going to be a psychologist, though I’m convinced she reads minds,” Merlin said. Arthur stared at him. “She’s a girl, Arthur. She picks up on things that Will and Lance won’t get unless we fucking shout it at them.”

Merlin took a few tentative steps toward Arthur, who looked tightly wound enough to power the Energizer Bunny for a week. Merlin placed his hands on Arthur’s shoulders, lightly at first, then more firmly, drawing him close. Arthur sighed into Merlin’s neck and wrapped his arms around his waist.

“I’m sorry. I panicked.”

“You handed things way more smoothly than I did,” Merlin assured him. “I might need help actually baking something for my mom.”

“Well, god knows we can’t let you bake on your own. You might burn the house down or put lye in the dough.”

“I’m not that stupid,” Merlin smiled.

“You’re not. You’re probably the smartest person I know.”

“You mean that?” Merlin said, grinning even more widely. Arthur released him just long enough to hit him over the back of his head. “Hey!”

“Shut up, Merlin.”

“How is it you go from saying something very nice to being so mean?” Merlin pouted. Arthur stepped back and stripped his shirt off, handing it to Merlin. His whole body honed in on Arthur and promptly forgot to be remotely annoyed at him.

“Still have a problem?”

“No,” Merlin said, his eyes never leaving Arthur’s stupid mouth. “Goddamn it. Do we have to go?”

“Yes, Merlin. They’re your friends,” he said, exasperated. He reached for Merlin’s shirt. Merlin batted his hands away and they exchanged clothes, dressing quickly.

In the car, Merlin said, “This is either going to go reasonably well or absolutely horribly.”

“I’d say that’s accurate,” Arthur said as they pulled into a parking spot. They could see Will, Gwen, and Lance waiting inside for them. He turned to Merlin and pulled him into a brief kiss.

“What was that for?” Merlin said, staring at Arthur through the darkness in his car.

“You shouldn’t have to deal with me still being in the closet,” he said softly. “You deserve so much more than this.”

“This? This is what I want. This is _all_ I want,” Merlin said. He grabbed Arthur’s face and turned him toward his own. “If I want out, I’ll tell you. But I don’t. I just want to be with you, and if that means keeping this a secret, then that’s what I want, too.”

Arthur nodded reluctantly. His stomach growled again and Merlin didn’t have to request twice that they just go inside and ear already.

Nothing truly catastrophic happened – until Gwen mentioned New York Comic-Con and her dazzling costumes.

“You’d make a _great_ Marvel Boy, or Hulkling, but you’d probably fit Marvel Boy’s attitude better,” Gwen mused.

“Oh, no. Arthur, tune her out right now or she’ll be fitting you for a spandex costume tomorrow.”

“Dear, dear Merlin. It’s far too late,” Gwen said gleefully. “Morgana’s the one who suggested it, actually.”

“I don’t even know if I’ll be in New York for Comic-Con,” Arthur said, shaking his head. “It’s the middle of October.”

“So? I’ll be there, but my school’s in Bumblefuck, New York,” Gwen said. “Just catch a bus to Chinatown and you’ll be golden.”

“I suppose I could spare Morgana a visit—”

“Arthur, this is _not_ a good idea. Gwen is using her Jedi mind tricks on you.”

“Why would she do that?” Arthur asked exasperatedly.

“She wants a complete set. The whole Young Avengers crew,” Lance explains while Gwen slurps up her milkshake.

“Face it, Gwen. You’ve run out of nerds in Camelot.”

“I’m not finished with you, William,” Gwen said resolutely, putting her milkshake down loudly enough to draw attention from the people in the booths around them.

“I’ll never join you,” Will shouted.

“If you only knew the power of the dark side,” Gwen sighed.

“Of cosplay?” Merlin asked slowly.

“Of the Force, silly,” Gwen said.

“Obi-Wan didn’t send you the memo, Merlin,” Arthur said, nudging him. Gwen laughed brightly.

“You’re in. No buts,” she said happily.

“Oh, god,” Merlin moaned. “You’ll never get away from her now.”

“Morgana did say she’s scary when she wants to be,” Arthur murmured.

“That’s an understatement.”

“Quit whispering and give me your phone so I can tell you when to come by for measurements,” Gwen said, waving her hands.

The moment Arthur handed his phone over, it was the end of any chance he had at escaping Merlin’s little circle of friends. It was a rare occurrence, granted, but Gwen was making a proper effort, the smart girl she was, and Lance was already friends with Arthur.

Will, on the other hand, was proving to be more of a prat than Arthur ever was (minus the locker and “gay is catching” incidents).

A whole week passed – which included a successful surprise birthday celebration for Hunith, complete with the cake he and Arthur baked; Arthur even stuck around to meet her, and she looked ready to adopt him by the end of the night – before Will followed Merlin out to the lake while he practiced magic and cornered him.

“He’s going to break your fucking heart, Merls.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Astronauts over Russia could see the massive fucking crush you have on Pendragon,” Will said, plopping down on a log next to where Merlin was practicing. “They could also see that he’s fifty shades of straight.”

“Yeah, well, maybe the astronauts are napping and can’t see a damn thing,” Merlin retorted. Will threw a stick at him but Merlin caught it deftly with his magic and smacked Will’s shoulder.

“So, what, you’re best pals now?”

“We’re friends. Good friends,” Merlin added. “We hang out a lot.”

“I got that,” Will said coolly. “Did you tell him about the magic?”

“Of course I haven’t told him,” Merlin said, not looking at Will. He wished more than anything he hadn’t had to say it, that there was no risk in telling Arthur.

“Good, ‘cuz his father would probably have you lynched.”

“Arthur’s not his father,” Merlin frowned.

Uther Pendragon, who openly hated magic users, allegedly due to a physician with magic refusing to save his dying wife in childbirth, regularly hosted anti-magic events, donated to organizations devoted to reducing the rights of magic users, and made a public point of considering people with magic cheaters, liars, and all-around sinful people – people he openly discouraged from applying to work for his many businesses in Camelot. He was a certain kind of horrible Merlin finally – with great relief– knew wasn’t genetically transmitted.

“You sure about that?”

“Absolutely,” he said. Merlin dropped the rock he’d been holding over the water’s surface. “I get you don’t like him, but he’s my friend. I don’t like most of your other friends but I don’t act like an ass about it.”

Will scowled at him.

“I’m just looking out for you, Merls.”

Merlin softened.

“I know. I appreciate it, but I know what I’m doing.”

Merlin sat down on the sand.

“I’m going to school tomorrow,” Will said, looking up at the sun glaring through the leaves overhead. “Sports start early and I need to move in before the weekend.”

“Oh. Wow.”

“Yeah. I just got that info the other day.”

“That’s shitty.”

“Tell me about it.”

“What do you want to do tonight, then?”

“Something special. Fun. Something we’ve been talking about doing for years.”

Merlin grinned. He had the just the thing in mind.

That was how later that night he, Will, Gwen, and Lance ended up at the high school, each with their least favorite textbooks in hand. Merlin shone his flashlight around the area. There wasn’t any security at the school over the summer. Kids broke in all the time. No one cared so long as no one caused any real damage, and that wasn’t what they were there to do.

They went in through the gym and climbed the steps up to the fourth floor.

“Where’s Arthur?” Gwen asked. Merlin looked back at her over his shoulder. “What? He’s been hanging out with us lately.”

“I told him this was an _us_ thing. He didn’t mind,” Merlin said. Arthur understood what he was doing for Will, though he made Merlin promise to let him do something for Merlin sometime soon – sometime before they needed to part ways, too.

“Arthur’s a good guy, deep down,” Lance said.

“Not so deep down anymore,” Gwen commented. “He’s been a total dream compared to what he was like before graduation.”

“Wonder who kicked his brain and reset it,” Will said.

They laughed, but it was a bit strained. On some level, Merlin had a feeling they knew that talking about Arthur like this with Merlin around wasn’t going to go well. They’d never really love the guy, not the way Merlin did, no matter how much Merlin did.

Merlin stopped in his tracks.

_Did I really just say I love him?_

“Merlin? You okay?”

“Having a stroke, actually,” he said dryly. He barreled up the last set of steps. He kept half the length of the hallway between them while he found the door to the roof and waited for his heart to calm the fuck down.

_Shit. I do love him._

Merlin braced himself against the doorjamb while the others caught up.

He was in a daze for their whole ceremony of pretending they were in Dead Poets Society and throwing their books off the roof (none of them had expensive desk sets to spare, sadly). Merlin laughed and shouted and joined in the fun just as much as everyone else, all of them hugging Will even when he tried to get away, but _Will was leaving_ and _Merlin loved Arthur_ , who was going to leave him very soon, too.

The pages fluttered in the breeze on the ground, the books barely held together by their broken spines, after the damage they’d caused them. For some reason, the sight only made Merlin’s chest hurt more and feel even emptier.

* * *

“So Gwen called me over earlier today,” Arthur said. They were having lunch in the parking lot at the theater during Merlin’s break. Merlin paused, his sandwich hovering between his lips.

“Was it for the costume?”

“Yes… and to tell me that she’d tear my balls off slowly and burn my cock if I hurt you in any way,” Arthur said. Merlin promptly put his sandwich down.

“She’s very—”

“Terrifying for such a tiny person?” Arthur almost squeaked. Merlin giggled.

“I was going to say well-meaning, but that’s true, too,” he smiled.

“Have you got tomorrow afternoon off?” Arthur asked.

“Yep. That’s my last day at the theater, too,” Merlin said gleefully.

“You’ve mentioned it no less than fifty times this week.”

“I’m excited, damn it. Isn’t that allowed?”

“I suppose,” Arthur sighed.

“We’ll have a whole week to hang out,” Merlin said, lowering his voice slightly, even though the parking lot was deserted. “Gwen and Lance are leaving Monday night. It’ll be just us.”

“It will,” he said. “I’ve got plans for us, Merlin Emrys. You’re going to love them.”

“Well what if I’m the one who’s got plans for us?”

“We can’t both have different plans, Merlin,” he said exasperatedly. A moment later, Arthur caught precisely what he’d said.

“Arthur—”

“I know we have to talk about this soon,” Arthur cut him off, “but can we do it another time? It’s just… it’s so nice out today. We should just enjoy it.”

“It’s going to be worse if we wait,” Merlin insisted.

“Don’t, Merlin. I’m not – I’m not there yet.”

“I’m not asking you to – to let me fuck your ass, or anything like that! I’m asking you to talk to me about what the hell we’re doing,” he exclaimed. “I’m not asking you to come out. I’m not asking anything other than what we are and where we’re going.”

“What do you mean?” Arthur asked. His eyes were wide, almost fearful.

“Beyond the end of next weekend. After we leave and go to college. _Different_ colleges. I need to know what we’ll be to each other,” Merlin said shakily.

“I don’t know,” Arthur said. Merlin’s heart stuttered.

“Okay. Then what are we to each other now?”

“Merlin—”

“ _Please_ , Arthur.”

“Can’t we do this later? At your house, or some place that isn’t the fucking parking lot?” Arthur hissed. He looked up nervously at the car pulling into the lot and parking a few spaces down from them.

Merlin simply stared at him.

He got up, wrapped up his sandwich, and tucked it under his arm.

“You’re asking big questions here. You can’t expect me to have an answer for you,” Arthur sputtered. He didn’t move to stop Merlin, though.

_No, but it means you probably having even considered it_ , he thought wearily.

“Just… think about it. I’ll see you tomorrow,” he said.

Merlin felt like he had a thousand pounds stacked on his shoulders by the time he made it back to the concession stand. He finished his sandwich half-hoping Arthur would come back and tell him exactly what he wanted to hear, but that wasn’t remotely realistic.

“Emrys,” Val barked. “My office, now.”

Merlin groaned and climbed out from behind the stand. Val slammed the door behind him.

“Sit.”

He sat.

“Pendragon sends me a list of people who’ve been banned from his premises,” Val said, picking up a sheet of paper. “Seems like my brother made the list a while ago. I just found out from him _why_.”

He was standing over Merlin in a heartbeat.

“That face of yours didn’t look so pretty a few weeks ago,” Val sneered. He touched Merlin’s cheekbone, his fingers roaming toward Merlin’s lips. He jerked away but Val caught him by the jaw and bore down painfully. “The moment you stop being my employee, two things are going to happen. I’ll tell my brother where he can find you, if he feels like _talking_ to you, and I’ll tell Pendragon what kind of person his precious kids are spending time with.”

“You can’t! I didn’t tell anyone what you did—”

“Oh, I’m grateful for that,” Val said, “but that’s all done now.”

“You _can’t_.”

“I can. I will. I can be a very professional man, Emrys, but you? You make me want to do extremely unprofessional things,” he said, his grip tightening on Merlin’s neck. “Watch yourself.”

Val released him. Merlin gasped, covering his neck protectively and scrambling out of his chair.

“Get out.”

Merlin hurried out of the office. His magic was erratic. He could feel it making the lights flicker and the slushie machine start and stop. Merlin ran for the bathroom and stuck his head under the tap until he felt some sense of control. His skin felt frozen by then.

When he came out of the bathroom there was a sizeable line at the stand. The sight of the popcorn machine made him feel sick to his stomach.

Merlin went home late that night prepared to fall right asleep, but the moment he opened the door, he knew _something_ had gone to hell. Little Aithusa scurried down the steps to greet Merlin and twist her tail around his ankle. Her box was on the floor by the shoe rack beside the door – along with a pair of shoes that could only belong to Morgana.

He dropped his bag by the door, picked up Aithusa, and went straight to the kitchen. His mother and Morgana were sitting close together each with a hot mug of tea. Morgana looked up and startled Merlin – he’d never seen her look so upset and disheveled. She never had an eyelash out of place and here she was with mascara and eyeliner drawing dark tracks down her cheeks. In his arms, Aithusa squirmed and meowed. Merlin handed her to Morgana before sitting across from them.

“What happened?” he asked.

“My dad found out about my magic,” Morgana said, her voice only a little tremulous but still weary from what was surely quite the outpouring of emotion. Merlin was glad he missed it; Morgana probably didn’t want anyone to see her like that anyway.

“How?”

“Does it matter? It was stupid. I was cleaning my damn room and he walked in and all my stuffed animals were floating and dancing to the music I had playing,” she said bitterly.

“You’re welcome to stay here,” Hunith said, taking Morgana’s hand.

“Thanks,” she murmured. “I haven’t got anywhere else to go, have I?”

“He kicked you out?”

“Fucking disowned me, the bastard,” Morgana spat, clenching her fists. She glanced at Hunith. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine, dear,” reassured Hunith. “Call him whatever you like. I can’t imagine what kind of man does this to their own child.”

“Does Arthur know?” Merlin asked.

“Not as far as I know. Who knows what Uther will tell him when he gets home,” Morgana sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know where else to go. I couldn’t think of anyone else who’d understand.”

“What about Mithian?”

“She’s gone to school already, and her parents are very close with my dad,” Morgana said.

“Oh. Well, I’m not about to kick you out.”

“Thanks. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell Arthur, though.”

“I won’t – but if he asks where you are?”

“Then… I dunno. I don’t know what he’d do. He’s never disagreed with our father on the matter of magic.”

“Val’s going to out me to your dad on Saturday,” Merlin said suddenly. Morgana’s face regained all its color and then some. He hastily recounted his meeting with Val.

“You’re not leaving that damn place alone, Merlin,” she said heatedly. Merlin was honestly afraid to refute her. “I’ll come pick you up from work, if Arthur won’t do it.”

If it didn’t already feel like his stomach was sinking through his chest cavity like a boulder, it now felt like a boulder that’d been hurled off a cliff by an Olympic-class shot-putter.

“I haven’t told him,” he paled. “Not about this, and definitely not about the magic. God. It’s – he’s going to think it’s his fault. He’s the one who got Kay thrown out for me.”

Merlin dropped his head onto the table.

“Everything’s gone to shit.”

“Pretty much.”

* * *

Merlin counted down the minutes of his last hour working the stand. At a quarter to three, Val called him into his office.

“Your last check will be ready for you tonight at closing. Mr. Pendragon will be stopping by later,” Val said without looking up from the computer. “Make sure to be here at midnight.”

“Got it,” Merlin said.

“You can go,” Val said belatedly. Merlin hurried out before Val could change his mind.

_Eleven minutes_.

He checked his phone. He had received yet another text from Arthur asking if he had any idea where Morgana was. Merlin finally shot back a reply, saying he’d explain later.

They had a date planned, something Arthur had planned for Merlin several days ago, but considering how tense their last meeting had been, Merlin wasn’t quite sure what to expect now. If anything, it made Merlin think hard about what he wanted out of his relationship with Arthur and… he just couldn’t expect Arthur to make a decision about their relationship when he didn’t know about one very important part of Merlin.

_Six minutes_.

Merlin started packing up his things. The theater was fairly empty for a Saturday afternoon. One of the new recruits was supposed to come in to take over from him, and they were terribly late, but Merlin wasn’t about to wait around. He bounded over the counter and walked out the doors, making for the blinding sunshine with gusto.

Arthur’s car pulled into the lot and up to the curb. Merlin got into the passenger seat. Arthur kissed him soundly for a solid few minutes before Merlin drew back, heart thudding and skin flushed, smiling hugely.

“What was that for?”

“A congratulations,” Arthur smiled back, “for finally getting out from behind that goddamn counter.”

“So, what’s the plan?” he asked as they pulled out and onto the highway.

“It’s a secret, Merlin.”

“Come on, you didn’t even tell me what to wear!”

“Clothes are fine – for now,” Arthur added, shooting him a mischievous look. Merlin shook his head, laughing, excitement building up quickly.

“Will it be cold or hot? Will it be wet or dry? Oh, god, are we going for a run somewhere? I didn’t bring running shoes—”

Arthur reached across and clapped his hand over Merlin’s mouth. Just as they were about to merge onto a larger highway, Arthur pressed a button and the top of his car folded away, letting all the glorious late August sunshine spill over them. The warm air cut through Merlin’s hair, messing it up completely.

“Better?” Arthur asked.

“God, it’s _perfect_ ,” Merlin exclaimed. He squeezed Arthur’s hand where it rested on the gearshift. The smile Arthur offered him in return was nearly enough to make all of Merlin’s doubts and fears fly away with the wind around them.

They drove for what felt like ages until Merlin saw a sign and squawked.

“Why are we in New York?” he asked.

“It’s part of the surprise, Merlin,” Arthur replied.

“Oh, fuck you. I’m not feeling particularly patient right now.”

“Tough luck, Merlin. You can punish me for it later, if you’d like,” he added. Merlin’s mouth dried quickly, all blood rushing south. Arthur looked over at him and smiled more widely. “I know I’d like that.”

“Yeah? Keep it up then,” Merlin croaked. Arthur laughed and revved the engine.

When they finally pulled off the motorway, it was curiously dark out considering it was still early. Merlin thought it was more due to the mountains framing the road they drove down, the trees full of dancing fireflies and lush foliage. The day felt so young and alive to him, now that they were away from the walls of Camelot. Merlin sucked in fresh air as they sped up the mountain.

His stomach growled loudly.

“We’re almost there,” Arthur said.

Ten minutes later, Arthur finally slowed the car and drove them up a dirt path. At the end of the road tucked away on a cliff overlooking the Catskills was a tiny restaurant.

“That was a long way to come for dinner,” Merlin teased. He hurried to follow Arthur to the restaurant entrance.

“It’s something pretty special,” he replied. “I came here with my father and Morgana a few times when we were younger. Everything they’ve got is vegetarian. They use locally grown produce and it’s all organic and insanely healthy, but it’s really good. I figured – I mean, I thought you might like a change from those veggie subs from Subway. If you don’t like it—”

“No,” Merlin interrupted. Arthur looked at him, eyes wide and unsure. Merlin touched his face and angled him toward Merlin. “It’s really brilliant. I know I’m going to love it.”

“Yeah?” he asked, hopeful.

“Of course.”

Merlin pressed his lips to Arthur’s, half-expecting him to stiffen and recoil, because they were in full view of the restaurant, hovering by the entrance, but he kissed him back just as happily and openly.

The hostess by the door beamed at them when they finally broke apart.

“Table for two?”

* * *

Morgana didn’t come up until they were splitting a chocolate lava cake.

“What’s Uther told you?”

“He’s mad as hell,” said Arthur, shaking his head. “He said she has magic – he said he caught her using it at home!”

“Right… What else?”

“Nothing. He won’t budge. He just wants to find her and… talk sense into her.”

“Sense? Magic isn’t a choice. It’s part of you,” Merlin frowned.

“ _I_ get that, Merlin, but he doesn’t,” Arthur sighed. A little part of Merlin relaxed at that admission. “You know where she is, don’t you?”

“Yeah. She’s… she’s staying with me, actually,” Merlin said. Arthur nearly dropped his fork.

“Seriously? I asked you at least four times and you’re just telling me now?”

“She didn’t want me to tell anyone! What was I supposed to do?”

“I’m not just anyone, I’m—”

“You’re _her brother_. She hasn’t got a reason to think you’d defend her when your father’s… well, your father.”

“I was going to say I’m _your_ _boyfriend_ , actually, which means you should feel like you can tell me these things anyway,” Arthur said, just a touch of coolness in his voice. Merlin looked up abruptly from his plate.

“Boyfriend?”

Arthur’s lips twitched.

“That’s more what I was hoping we could talk about,” he said, looking down almost bashfully. “You were right. I was trying not to think about it because it meant making _decisions_ , but I – it wasn’t fair to you. Not in the least.”

With absolute perfect timing, the waitress appeared. She angled her rather distracting figure toward Arthur.

“Anything else for you boys?”

“Just the check,” Arthur said quickly, not once looking away from Merlin. She walked away swinging her hips, but Arthur’s eyes again didn’t once stray.

“I’m impressed,” Merlin murmured. He shuffles his chair forward a little.

“I’m pretty sure I’m as gay as you are,” Arthur replied simply. Merlin’s jaw dropped.

“Really? Because you had, like, eighteen girlfriends—”

“Yeah, didn’t that say something to you? Like maybe I was trying too hard?”

Merlin snorted.

“Yeah, but in what universe does someone as gorgeous as you end up with someone like me?”

“This one,” Arthur says, “if you’ll have me, that is.”

Arthur reaches across the table and takes Merlin’s hand in his.

“I… I’m going to come out to my father before I go to college,” Arthur said. Merlin met Arthur’s gaze and couldn’t look away – the intensity, the sincerity there, was utterly entrancing. “I’m pretty damn sure about who I am, so I don’t see why I should hide it any longer. My father’s going to have to accept it.”

“Does he know about Morgana and Mithian?”

“No idea,” Arthur admitted. “I don’t think that’d help Morgana’s case, to be honest.”

Merlin dropped Arthur’s gaze just as the waitress returned with the check. Arthur stuffed a couple of bills into the book and rose from his seat. Merlin followed him quietly out to the car.

“Where to now? Home?”

“There’s a part two to our date,” Arthur said, starting the engine. “I promise it’s not another state away.”

“Are you sure we’re not running away to Canada right now?”

“Maybe we are.”

“I’d like that.”

“Canada?”

“Running away with you,” Merlin said, sighing deeply and sliding low in his seat. He reclined it further so he could watch the stars fly by overhead. Arthur didn’t reply, but Merlin could feel the tightly coiled happiness in him, even from where he sat.

They drove back down the mountain and pulled off the road into a wide field. Merlin took one look at the gigantic tarp at the end of the field and looked at Arthur curiously.

“Are we at a drive-in?”

“Maybe.”

“What are we seeing?”

“Take a look,” Arthur said, pointing at the sign by the entrance as they passed by.

_Young Avengers_.

Merlin let out a wildly excited sound.

“It’s been out of theaters for ages!” he exclaimed.

“Took ages to track down a place still playing it!” Arthur said happily. “I think it worked out pretty nicely.”

They parked near the back. Merlin set up the speakers while Arthur went to get popcorn and drinks.

“I’m not setting foot near any concession stands any time soon if I can help it,” Merlin said resolutely, much to Arthur’s amusement.

They settled into the back seat, huddled close under a blanket with the windows rolled down, letting the sweet mountain air wash over them. Merlin exhaled contentedly.

“Is this good?” Arthur asked. Merlin sat up when he heard genuine worry in Arthur’s voice. He smiled at him, brushing a stray lock of hair off Arthur’s forehead. Arthur turned his face into Merlin’s touch, nuzzling his palm.

“More than good. Thanks, Arthur.”

Merlin kissed him gently. Arthur yielded slowly, taking Merlin in with care. When they pulled apart, they were already ten minutes into the movie.

“Maybe this wasn’t precisely the best idea if you actually want to watch the movie,” Arthur said with a tiny laugh.

“I think we can hold it together,” Merlin said bracingly. Arthur dropped his head against the headrest. Merlin snickered and tucked himself into Arthur’s side, turning to face the screen instead. He traced patterns on Arthur’s skin under his shirt all the way through the film.

“God, that’s so _cool_ ,” Arthur marveled at some magic Wiccan exhibited. “I understand my father’s fear of it, but never his hatred. Magic seems so incredible.”

Merlin didn’t reply.

“Would Morgana let me come talk to her?” Arthur asked.

“I think so,” said Merlin softly. “I’ll talk to her tonight.”

“Do you ever wonder what it’d be like?”

“What?”

“To have magic,” Arthur mused. “To be able to do so much – to do _anything_.”

“It’s not that simple, Arthur,” Merlin said. “You can’t do _anything_ when people hate you for something that can’t be helped.”

“I know that,” Arthur said, sounding apologetic.

The movie suddenly picked up and they dropped the conversation. Arthur looked at Merlin a few times, but Merlin didn’t look back. He knew he’d gone a bit tense in his arms after that, and he knew that now was probably the only and best opportunity to come out with it.

The credits rolled.

“You don’t seem nearly as happy or excited as I hoped you’d be,” Arthur started.

“I am,” Merlin said quickly, “but there’s something we need to talk about.”

“Okay,” Arthur said. He sat up and turned to face Merlin. “Are… are we breaking up?”

“What? No! I mean, I don’t want to, though you might change your mind in a few minutes, but—”

“I wouldn’t,” Arthur said, “I swear.”

“Arthur, don’t. Please don’t promise something like that when you just _don’t know_.”

“What the hell don’t I know?”

“Magic!” Merlin shouted.

“What about it?” he blinked.

“I have it! I have magic.”

Merlin gasped for air, like he’d run miles rather than spoken six simple words. Arthur stared at him. Merlin could barely see him through the dark in the car.

“Please say something,” Merlin finally said, his voice breaking miserably. He shrank away from Arthur when his silence persisted, emerging from under the blanket. “I’m sorry. God, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, but so few people know! It’s just my mom, and Will, Gwen, and Lance, and that’s only because they’re pretty much my family. I never told any of them, though.”

“What? How do they—?”

“They caught me at it. Like – like Morgana. She knows too. That’s why she came to me when Uther threw her out,” Merlin said. Arthur looked down at his lap and nodded.

“Makes sense, I suppose.”

“I’m so sorry, Arthur.”

“Why? Why are you apologizing?”

“For not—?”

“I get it, Merlin. I really do. My father is a deeply prejudiced man who happens to have a lot of power in Camelot. You’ve done what you’ve had to do to survive,” said Arthur in an even voice. “I can’t begrudge you that.”

Merlin shut his eyes.

“You’re upset.”

“Of course I’m upset, Merlin,” he said sharply. Arthur paused and exhaled softly. “I’m sorry, too.”

“What for?” Merlin asked. He wanted to kick himself for the way his voice warbled and his eyes burned.

“Shouting.”

“Oh.”

“And making you feel like you couldn’t tell me this sooner,” he added. He edged toward Merlin, but Merlin couldn’t bring himself to even look at Arthur.

“I just didn’t know what you’d do,” he said quietly.

“Now you know.”

“What are you doing?” Merlin asked, his heart hammering harder than ever.

“Accepting it,” Arthur said firmly. “Can… can you show me?”

Merlin had to look at him now. He found Arthur hovering close, clearly desperate to come closer, but very plainly afraid of the chance that Merlin might push him away. Merlin angled his body toward him and touched Arthur’s hand lightly where it rested on the blanket between them. Merlin turned his hand over between his and held Arthur’s so his palm faced up. Merlin looked at Arthur once more, just to be certain, but Arthur seemed the farthest thing from unsure – he looked enraptured, brightening already before the sparks of Merlin’s magic gearing up.

A little flame erupted in Arthur’s palm. Merlin held on, keeping him from jerking away. Arthur relaxed almost immediately, pressing his thumb to Merlin’s where they touched. His eyes danced with the flame, his smile like a lantern all on its own. Merlin made the sparks fly higher, then turned the fire into a deep red flower, blooming gracefully on Arthur’s palm.

“A flower? For me?” Arthur joked, his voice light, yet heavy with awe.

“Just goes to show how lame I can be, right?”

“It’s perfect. I love it,” Arthur said, plucking the flower off his hand. He turned his palm so he held Merlin’s hand securely. “Are we going to be okay?”

“I hope so. I want to be.”

“Then we’re more than okay.”

Relief overwhelmed Merlin when Arthur kissed him, that warmth and kindness very much still there. They hadn’t changed. Arthur was still with him, not running for the hills, and he was holding Merlin’s hand.

Naturally, Merlin’s phone went off.

Arthur snorted and pulled away, resting his head heavily on Merlin’s as he struggled to extricate his phone from his pocket.

“You’re not helping,” Merlin said with no heat. Arthur wrapped his arms around Merlin’s and tackled him onto the seat. Merlin let out an _oof_ as he answered.

“Am I interrupting something?” Gwen giggled.

“No,” Merlin said. “What’s going on?”

“All the costumes are ready! Everyone’s coming by so we can all try them on together,” Gwen said. “You’ll be back by midnight, right?”

Arthur nodded, his face currently pressed to Merlin’s chest. He moved up and nosed at the skin exposed by the neckline. Merlin shuddered, and not just from the cold of Arthur’s nose.

“Yeah, we’ll be back in time. I just have to pick up my last check first,” Merlin said.

“Call when you’re back, alright?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“Use a condom, boys!”

Merlin quickly hung up and nearly threw his phone under the seat. Arthur laughed.

“At least she’s being responsible for us,” Arthur said, stretching lazily without releasing Merlin.

“Yeah, but it’s like having my mom tell me to practice safe sex,” Merlin said, shaking his head. “It’s just weird.”

“Well, Gwen’s mind can rest at ease,” Arthur said.

“Oh my god,” Merlin laughed. Arthur’s face turned tomato red. “You totally planned this, didn’t you?”

“Well—”

“Look, romantic as this is, it sure as hell won’t be as comfortable as having sex back in one of our beds.”

“We could always check into a hotel somewhere and tell everyone to fuck off,” Arthur sighed. “That’d be _amazing_.”

“We could run away to Canada.”

“Or… we could just… you know. Here.”

Merlin laughed. “You’re determined.”

“I’m pretty damn set on this happening, Merlin,” he grinned.

“It will. I’m excited, too. I’ve never—”

Arthur looked up at him. “Really?”

“My sexual prowess isn’t really that… impressive.”

“Had me fooled.”

Merlin blushed hotly. Arthur looked up from where he’d pillowed his head on Merlin’s chest, his eyes dark and warm all at once.

“How about this? We can get off now and then head home, but tomorrow—”

“Tomorrow,” Merlin promised just before launching himself at Arthur, his whole body energized and light with the joy of having absolutely nothing to hide – and of having Arthur Pendragon writhing under him. Merlin was certain that feeling would _never_ grow old.

* * *

Gwen called two more times before they were even close to Camelot. They’d left a little later than planned, having gotten a  _bit_ carried away, but no one was really complaining – other than Val.

“Where the fuck are you?” he demanded.

“Ten minutes away. I was out of town all afternoon,” Merlin said.

“Get down here faster.”

Val hung up. Merlin groaned.

“He sounded mad,” Arthur started. Merlin shook his head.

“It’ll be fine,” he said. “You can go down to Gwen’s if you want. I don’t mind walking.”

“I’ll wait,” said Arthur calmly.

“Arthur—”

“Shut up, Merlin.”

The sigh of Camelot coming into view made Merlin’s stomach drop a little. They were back where they were earlier, only a few promises heavier and one giant secret lighter. _Only_. Merlin smiled to himself. They were getting somewhere.

He got out on the curb and went straight in. The only lights on were in Val’s office. He went and knocked on the open door, but when he looked inside, no one was there.

“Val?”

Merlin looked around, but no one was there.

He turned around to go outside and call Val, but a meaty hand slapped the phone out of his hand. Another set of hands grabbed him by the arms and started dragging him, and yet another clamped tight on his mouth. He twisted and writhed but in the dark Merlin couldn’t see a damn thing. More hands grabbed his ankles and threw him off the ground.

Merlin tried to scream, but his voice was pretty solidly muffled. He tried to bite with little success other than tasting the guy’s hand.

A rusty door swung open and the night sky opened up over him. They swung him back, then threw him out onto the gravel and garbage in the alley. Merlin sputtered and rolled over onto his hands and knees. A rock-hard boot connected with his ribs before he could get to his feet.

“What the _fuck_ —,” Merlin wheezed. He stumbled forward, only to meet another painful kick to the stomach.

“You’re a pain in the ass, Emrys, you know that?”

That was Kay’s voice.

“Got under Arthur’s skin, got him to fucking ban us from the whole goddamn town—”

“What fucking tricks are you playing on him? Is it magic?” Kay sneered. “My brother’s told me some pretty interesting theories about you.”

“Been watching me, was he? That’s creepy,” Merlin rasped.

Another kick. Merlin’s magic was starting to act up, but now wasn’t right. No. He struggled to keep it all together and under control.

“Fag,” Kay spat, then actually spat in Merlin’s face.

“Don’t.”

Kay looked up. Merlin twisted around, just to be sure, but yeah, it was Arthur, standing in an embarrassingly heroic stance at the end of the alley – legs apart, hands on his hips, back straight as a board. Merlin wanted to tell the idiot to get the hell out, but fuck if he didn’t think it was a _little_ hot.

“Come back to your senses yet?” Kay asked.

“Oh, yes. Now back the fuck away from him.”

“Guess not, then. Piss off, Arthur.”

Kay grabbed a fistful of Merlin’s shirt and waved at the three others waiting in the shadows. Merlin still couldn’t see a damn thing and his magic was floundering. They rushed over and each grabbed one of Merlin’s limbs. Merlin tried to wriggle away but it only earned him a fist to the jaw.

He tried to see where the hell Arthur was and why he wasn’t doing anything, but when Merlin looked around, the alley was empty but for Kay and his cronies.

The dumpster lock clattered as it fell next to his head. Kay swung the lid open.

“Come on,” he grunted.

“Hey, wait – what are you—?”

“You’re going for a dive, Emrys. Hold your breath.”

They lifted him off the ground unevenly, giving Merlin just enough time to kick free, fall hard, and crawl away. He looked back and Kay’s right over him, ready to drive his fist through Merlin’s teeth—

When an arrow shot past and lodged itself in the brick wall of the theater. Kay, wide-eyed, raised a hand to his face and touched the bleeding graze on his cheek. He looked up.

“What the _fuck?_ ”

Merlin turned over and looked at the mouth of the alley, expecting maybe Robin Hood, but found something equally absurd: America Chavez, Kate Bishop, Iron Lad, and a costume-free Arthur.

Morgana lined up another arrow and drew the bow tightly, pointing right at Kay’s face.

“Wanna back off, fuckwad?” she shouted.

Kay burst out laughing.

“You’re shitting me,” he said, stalking past Merlin toward his friends.

“That blood on your face is very real, Kay,” Lance said, pointing. Merlin slowly rose to his feet. The chrome on the sleeve of Lance’s costume shone in the dim lighting.

Merlin barely heard scuffling behind him in time. Merlin spun around as others lunged for him. His magic worked faster than his reflexes. When Merlin opened his eyes from pre-emptively cringing, all three were on the ground, doubled over in pain, crying out for air.  

“You _are_ a sorc—”

Kay was very effectively cut off by Gwen’s roundhouse kick to the side of his head. He hit the ground like a sack of potatoes. Gwen stepped back, looked down at her clothes, and looked awfully pleased.

“What? Nothing ripped!” she said when she caught Merlin staring.

“So… why is everyone in costume for this episode of _let’s save Merlin from getting his ass kicked_?”

“We were already dressed when Arthur called us!”

“Right,” Merlin said slowly. He took a few steps toward them and almost lost balance. His ribs on one side hurt like hell. Arthur rushed forward and slung Merlin’s arm around his neck. “Don’t say I told you so,” he murmured.

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Arthur replied smugly. Merlin hobbled a few paces. Arthur tightened his grip on Merlin’s waist as they reached the others.

“What the hell even happened?” Gwen asked. “I mean, we saw what happened, but how—”

“It’s fine,” he interrupted. “Val’s a bastard, basically. I was supposed to pick up a check from him and they were waiting for me.”

“Good thing Arthur stuck around,” Lance said darkly. “They looked ready to redecorate your face.”

“That dumpster doesn’t look too comfy, either, Merlin,” added Morgana. She stowed her bow and arrow. “This is quite excellent, Gwen. I might carry this around at school.”

“I doubt NYPD would like it very much,” Merlin grinned.

“Pfft. Fuck the police.”

“Too bad you didn’t have your Marvel Boy costume, Arthur,” Gwen said. “We might’ve been even _cooler_.”

“Next time Merlin’s stuck in an alley, I’ll be sure to take heed of the memo,” he promised.

“Marvel Boy? Seriously? You let her make you _that_?” Merlin sniggered.

“Shut it, Merlin. It could be worse.”

“You should’ve pushed for Teddy.”

“Look, I was just doing what Gwen wanted, okay?”

“What Gwen says goes, I suppose,” Merlin agreed. Arthur nodded sagely. They both laughed, leaning against each other. Arthur was still holding firmly onto Merlin. Gwen’s eyes settled on where Arthur’s hand securely touched Merlin’s side. She raised an eyebrow at them.

Arthur kissed Merlin’s cheek lightly, lacing his fingers through Merlin’s free hand.

Unexpectedly Gwen and Morgana burst into victorious whooping and cheering loud enough to wake the dead.

“Calm down! Do you want to wake them up?” Lance hissed.

“Oops,” Gwen giggled. “We’re very excited.”

“Got that,” Merlin said, his face still terribly hot and surely red and beacon-like, even in the dark. Arthur chuckled, the laugh rumbling by Merlin’s ear where he tucked himself in against Arthur’s chest. Morgana and Gwen only crowed more intensely as they made for their cars. “God, they’re horrible.”

“A little,” Arthur laughed. “I don’t mind.”

“Really?”

“Felt good to finally show it. To be able to kiss you for real now.”

Merlin smiled into Arthur’s shoulder. Arthur shoved him lightly.

“Walk, you idiot. I’m not carrying you.”

“Oh, please? Really give them something to laugh about!” Merlin laughed.

He didn’t expect Arthur to go through with it and carry him bridal-style all the way to his car. Gwen and Morgana seemed to be having a conniption in their car. Lance appeared ready to walk home rather than stay with them. Merlin let his head hang back and grinned at the starry sky.

“I’m going to talk to my father about everything tomorrow,” Arthur said. Merlin righted himself and looked at Arthur.

“Everything?”

“He’ll see the tapes. The magic was pretty… obvious, really,” he admitted, “but it was very clearly in self-defense.”

“Arthur, whatever happens, just make sure my mother’s okay, alright?”

“I know,” Arthur sighed. He put Merlin gently on the ground. Merlin slid up to him and slotted between his legs, winding his arms around Arthur’s waist. Arthur exhaled contentedly. “I know my father can make life hell for people he doesn’t like, but… we’re going to make him love you, alright?”

“It might take a miracle.”

“You’re a very lovable person, Merlin,” Arthur smiled.

“I’m your gay sorcerer boyfriend. There are several things Uther’s not going to love.”

“Maybe not right off the bat, but I didn’t really like you at first either,” Arthur said with a teasing smile. “And now I—”

Merlin looked at him curiously. The words seemed stuck in Arthur’s mouth, but Merlin heard them anyway. He happily kissed him full on the mouth.

Gwen and Morgana made an obscenely loud and excited sound from the car down the row of spaces. Merlin winced and pulled back.

“They’re terrible.”

“Rather,” Arthur said, licking his lips, still watching Merlin’s mouth. “Let’s get you home.”

They drove away from Gwen and Morgana still giggling in the car while Lance continued to wait like the martyr he was.

“You know, the magic… it was pretty cool. Very cool,” Arthur said nonchalantly. Merlin looked at him and quirked an eyebrow at him. Arthur paused at a red light and caught Merlin looking at him. “Oh, fuck – it was pretty hot, actually.”

“What? Really?” Merlin yelped.

“I thought so,” Arthur said, pressing on. “Ever used it in bed?”

“Er. No. Secret, remember?”

“What about on yourself?” Arthur asked, as though he was asking after Merlin’s grocery list. Merlin sputtered. Arthur gave him a heated look as they turned onto his road. “That’s a yes.”

It took Merlin a moment to recover.

“I’d be willing to try… whatever you’d like, really,” said Merlin. Arthur gripped the steering wheel more tightly. “We can explore all that together.”

He barely suppressed a full-body shudder. When they pulled into Merlin’s driveway, Arthur asked,

“Do you want me to stay? Not for sex, not when you’re hurt. For company,” he clarified.

“I….”

“I will, if you do. I won’t leave you alone if you’re worried,” Arthur said fiercely. “Plus, you’re hurt, and I want to be sure you’ll be okay.”

“It’s just a few bruises,” Merlin tried, but Arthur only glared at him.

“So I’ll go then—”

“No! No. Stay. Please?”

“Fine,” Arthur said with a dramatic sigh.

They made their way to the house. When Merlin finally found the key, after much teasing on Arthur’s part at his inability to even find his own backside most days, he paused, hovering before the keyhole.

“Arthur?”

“Yes, Merlin?” he said exasperatedly.

“You know I love you, right?”

Arthur blinked, all sarcasm and faux irritation falling away. The smile that bloomed on Arthur’s face was rather like the sun slowly coming out from behind a cloud and warming your skin – just strong enough to make you shiver. It almost hurt to hold Arthur’s gaze, to not give in and crumble under the sheer _wonder_ , and at the same time, it was the easiest thing in the world.

“I love you, too, Merlin.”

Merlin’s joy was a starburst, a dam bursting open, the adrenaline rush of sprinting hard to the finish line – it was immediate and all-encompassing and just incredible enough to bypass being incomprehensible. Merlin didn’t care how huge and silly his smile grew or how ridiculous he seemed, how much of his heart be was baring to the open air, beaming brighter than the streetlights at Arthur, because Arthur was like a bloody mirror.

They kissed hard, and barely made it to Merlin’s room, riding the high (among other things) all the way through the night. Merlin didn’t register when Morgana came home, nor when his mother returned from the night shift; it was damn near impossible with Arthur going down on him or simply peppering his neck with kisses.

“I don’t want to go,” Merlin blurted in the middle of making out. Arthur raised himself up, careful not to jostle Merlin’s bruised side. “To college, I mean. We didn’t get much time to just… be us.”

“No,” Arthur agreed. He looked at Merlin and some of the sadness fell away. “But I’ll visit, and you’ll visit. We’ll be us even if we’re not in the same city.”

“Are you sure? I mean, don’t you want to – sample the sights or—?”

“Merlin,” Arthur cut in, “I don’t want to sample anything. I just want _you._ I can’t imagine wanting anyone else.”

“Right,” Merlin exhaled, relieved.

“I love you, remember?”

“I’m never going to get tired of hearing that,” he grinned.

“You’re not going to say it back?”

“You might need to pry it out of me.”

“Yeah? How do you want me to _pry it out?_ ”

Merlin lied back on the bed, folding his arms behind his head. He smiled up at Arthur, reveling in the hungry look on his face.

“I’m sure you’ll think of something… Marvel Boy.”

Arthur groaned and dropped onto the pillow next to Merlin.

“Fuck off.”

“Oh, say it again, won’t you, _Marvel Boy_? It’s getting me all hot and bothermmpph—!”

A while later, Merlin, thoroughly blissed out, managed to say,

“Alright. I love you. God, that was marvelous.”

“ _Marvelous_? Really, Merlin? Marvel jokes in bed?” Arthur snorted.

“Don’t be sore, or I won’t try something truly ingenious,” Merlin smiled. He kissed Arthur’s neck and worked his way down. “Something with the magic.”

Merlin released it a little, letting his magic ghost over some of Arthur’s sensitive spots Merlin had discovered recently. Arthur nearly launched himself off the bed. Merlin firmly straddled Arthur’s thighs and pinned him down at the hips. His magic picked up, massaging and tickling in turn. Arthur’s fingers dug into the pillows hard enough to make a few feathers pop out.

“ _Fuck,_ Merlin.”

“Is it marvelous, Arthur?” Merlin beamed, his lips touching the end of his leaking cock. Arthur whimpered. Merlin resisted the urge to crow victoriously. He slowly took Arthur into his mouth, working his magic around his balls and the skin behind it. Arthur looks ready to fall apart. Merlin pressed on, intensifying the magic as it worked Arthur’s skin, eventually moving toward his hole. Merlin reached with his own finger and gently worked a thin finger through the tightly furled muscle.

Arthur came hot and hard down Merlin’s throat instantly, his grip on Merlin’s hair bordering on painful, though it only made Merlin harder than ever for him. Merlin pulled off and out and away. Arthur looked like Merlin had literally blown his mind.

“ _Marvelous_. Yeah. God, what _was_ that?”

“You asked what I do to myself. That’s one thing,” Merlin said. He slid up Arthur’s body, slotting between his legs, and kissed him chastely. He placed a hand on Arthur’s chest, still rising and falling rapidly.

“Just one thing?” Arthur croaked.

“We’ll get to the rest.”

“I know,” Arthur sighed, sounding incredibly, almost incomprehensibly, happy. “I know.”

Yesterday, Merlin might’ve doubted Arthur’s confidence, but now he didn’t, not one bit. He didn’t have a reason to doubt now. He had all the proof he needed that they’d get to do it all. Merlin grinned, burying himself in Arthur’s warmth and weight, and held on just as tightly as Arthur did.


End file.
